whisky

Last week I tried a set of three whiskies from Glenfiddich at an event in London to showcase some of their new releases. I had only tried the more general, run-of-the-mill varieties before so it was a great privilege to have the chance to sip some special ones, especially the 1974 Vatted Vintage Release, of which only 50 bottles will be available in the UK.

As always, these are only my views on them and I’m sure you will read differing opinions elsewhere, but here are my thoughts based on how all three whiskies tasted on the day I tried them:

Glenfiddich Gran Reserva, Rum Cask Finish, 21-year-old:

This bottling has recently been re-housed in a new bit of rather eye-catching packaging so is being released as the same whisky but with a style makeover.

The whisky is matured 21 years in American oak before finishing in Caribbean rum casks.

On the nose I got hints of vanilla, baked sugar (like the smell you get when you fire a crème brûlée top) and banana.

Despite these sweet scents, it was still fairly crisp on the tongue and not overly tacky, like you sometimes get with toffee flavours. It was very light and had little aftertaste.

Adding a bit of water brought out the fruitiness more, making it blossom.

Glenfiddich Age of Discovery, Madeira Cask Finish, 19-year-old:

This Glenfiddich celebrates the Portuguese explorers of the 15th century and comes in a stunningly designed box with intricate maps showing the explorers’ journeys.

Master Distiller Brian Kinsman told us they were trying to find a way to honour people that step out in life and take risks, akin to the explorers of the past, and it’s a good way of tying together the Madeira casks from Portugal [...]