Category: Glen Garioch

Style: Soapy and Complex

Nose:
An intriguing mix of haystacks and fresh cut grass. Peaty wood smoke brimming on top of subtle tropical fruits. Smoked eel, salted pineapple and caramel. I can mistake this as an Islay bottling. Floral notes diffusing in, slightly soapy. Interesting… Feels like an old-school nose.

Palate:
Curiously soapy. Reminds me of late 80s Bowmore. Musky tropical fruits with floral soap on the palate. Ester fruits sit behind while wood smoke churning softly. Dry hay undertone, while peppermint spice pinching in. Perfumed water, parma violet hovering over amber coal. More smoked eel, confectionery shop finish.

Finish:
Soap continues to bubble, smoky malt, barley husk and soft tropical fruits.

Thoughts:
I am not a big fan of soapy malt, so this is definitely not my dram. It is like soap bar sure smells good, but I don’t want to eat a soap-flavoured ice cream. That said, the whisky does offer nice old-school signatures. Wood smoke, peat, complex with a good sweet-dry balance, if you don’t mind soapy stuff, give it a go.

[53.6% • Original Bottling • 2012 Bottled • 1980 Distilled • Single Cask • Cask Strength • Non Coloured • Non Chill Filtered • Matured in a Hogshead]

-Esmond

Style: Fruity, Perfumed and Peaty

Nose:

Starts with a brittle layer of malty, digestive biscuits. Purple flower perfume pushes up, clean stream of peppermint –tropical fruits laced by a modest dose of earthy peat. Slightly grassy and muddy, followed by subtle ginger drops forming another top note, whereas sweet fruits crystallizing in the middle as the aroma unlocks. Finish with a touch of waxy honeycomb at the back.

Palate:

Vintage tropical fruits putting up a tantalizing display at the forefront. Muddy peaty water brushed around it – is this the old Highland style of peat? Distinct but hushed floral perfume notes flashing from time to time. Oak and espresso notes sink and participate at the bottom. Clean fruits connect upwards to peppermint top notes, while it also reaches downwards to some dry barley brushes… While there are some curious soapy, perfume touches along the way, but overall a clean, calm and complex presentation.

Finish:

Malty, fruit-laden finish with a touch of coffee cream. Quite nice.

Thoughts:

My first vintage Glen Garioch, very interesting style – 60s mellow tropical fruits delicately wrapped around by muddy peat notes, while subdued soapy tone dancing in between. I read online and there are some being very sceptical of the perfume notes in this one, which one would associate with the notorious “FWP”, although I find the level of soapiness in this Glen Garioch is minimal. Maybe after spending these additional years in the bottle, the elements have further mellowed down and amalgamated into a more coherent form. Not a stunning drop but still quite nice, depending how much you cannot tolerate perfume notes, I guess.

☆ [Recommended]

[52% • Independent Bottling • 1966 Distilled • 1998 Bottled • Aged 22 Years • Single Cask • Cask Strength • 166 of 320 Bottles • Non Chill Filter • Non Coloured • *]

-Esmond