From the Cellars of Jlynn
Volume II – The Glenlivet Affair
Author’s Note:
This series discusses alcoholic beverages. Please read mindfully if you are in recovery or choose to avoid alcohol.
Some bottles sweep you into an affair before the cork has even turned. Others are content to court you quietly. Glenlivet 18 was the former — a promise in amber, a whisper of honey and oak before I’d even set it down on the table.
I met it after years of enjoying its younger sibling, the Glenlivet 15 — a lively, charming sort who balanced bright fruit with a hint of spice. But the 18 … the 18 had been places. It carried the wisdom of oak casks that had held sherry and bourbon before it, each year weaving another layer into its character.
The first sip was a slow waltz — ripe apricot, polished leather, a breath of toffee — all wrapped in a finish that lingered just long enough to make me wonder if I’d imagined it. No. It was still there. And so was I.
This wasn’t a fling; it was an education. The 18 didn’t need to dazzle — it knew exactly who it was, and that quiet confidence made me lean in closer.
It tasted like finding the perfect sentence in a book you’ve loved for years — the one you’d somehow never noticed until now.
Bottle Label Notes
Name: Glenlivet 18 Year Old Single Malt Scotch Whisky
Type & Age: Single Malt Scotch, 18 years
Origin: Speyside, Scotland
Proof: 43% ABV (86 proof)
Palate: Dried apricot, honey, toffee, polished oak, gentle spice
Finish: Long, elegant, with a final whisper of sherry warmth
Distillery Lore: Founded in 1824, Glenlivet was the first legal distillery in the parish of Glenlivet — earning founder George Smith both fame and the occasional death threat from illicit competitors.
Palatability Expiration Warning: Timeless once sealed. Once opened, savor within 24 months … if you can resist that long.
The Glenlivet Affair Tasting Ritual
Invitation – Pour into a wide-bowled glass; admire the deep gold as you would a lover’s glance across the room.
The First Nose – Inhale slowly; catch the apricot and toffee before they slip away.
The Waltz – Glide it across your tongue, then close your eyes for the second half of the dance.
The Lingering Look – Let the finish settle in, patient as dusk.
The Toast – “To age with grace — and just enough mischief to stay interesting.”
Cellar Lore Bonus – The Shanty of Spirits & Libations
Sing it loud, sing it proud, and don’t forget to sip between verses.
Chorus
Raise it high, pour it out, let the barrel sing,
From spiritus to libation, we toast to everything!
The breath of grain, the soul of fire, the stories yet untold,
With every glass a memory, with every sip some gold.
Verse 1
They caught the breath of barley, the vapor from the flame,
Called it spiritus eternal, but “whiskey” was its name.
A draught distilled by alchemists, a fire they could keep,
A soul poured into bottles, a dream that burns so deep.
Verse 2
The ancients poured their offerings, to gods and to the dead,
With wine and oil and honey streams, the thirsty earth was fed.
They called the act libation, a bond of kin and sky,
And every drop remembered keeps the mortal spirit high.
Chorus
Raise it high, pour it out, let the barrel sing,
From spiritus to libation, we toast to everything!
The breath of grain, the soul of fire, the stories yet untold,
With every glass a memory, with every sip some gold.
Verse 3
The monks they kept the secret, in cloisters cool and dim,
Their waters of life whispered in psalms and ancient hymn.
A prayer, a dram, a comfort, when winter nights grew long,
And from those cloistered cellars came the world’s first drinking song.
Verse 4
So sailor, monk, and farmer all raised a glass the same,
The spirit bound in vapor, the libation in the name.
From hearth to port to tavern, across the rolling seas,
We drink not just for pleasure but for histories like these.
Final Chorus
Raise it high, pour it out, let the barrel sing,
From spiritus to libation, we toast to everything!
The breath of grain, the soul of fire, the stories yet untold,
With every glass a memory, with every sip some gold.
Performance Note: Best sung at a stomping pace in 4/4 time — glasses raised on the chorus.
After the Pour
Confession: I cannot yet afford Glenlivet 18.
Question: Is there a Glenlivet 24 waiting somewhere in the dark?
Closing Toast
To the bottles that wait patiently for you to be ready … and the moments that make you wonder why you ever waited at all.
