Whiskey question ......

[ozboz]

I like to try different whiskeys on occasion , I’ve just watched a programme about a distillery called Glenfarclas . Of those in the know so to speak , is it as good as it claimed ? , I know not all tastes are not the same , but this came over as a special single malt , especially the 25 yo that had been stored in Sherry barrels ,

 

[Profpointy]

Mmm, Glenfarclas is whisky not whisky

... but in answer to the question I confess I don't know Glenfarclas but have seen it in pubs or lists semi-regularly, and would guess it's pretty good, especially if they're bothering to push a 25 year old, which a quick google revealed to be north of a hundred quid a bottle. A 15 year old French brandy casked Glenlivet, also a Speyside which I've got is very good indeed, at normal price, although I'm more of an Island whisky man. The GF you mentioned is likely a bit rather special.

 

[PK99]

I like to try different whiskeys on occasion , I’ve just watched a programme about a distillery called Glenfarclas . Of those in the know so to speak , is it as good as it claimed ? , I know not all tastes are not the same , but this came over as a special single malt , especially the 25 yo that had been stored in Sherry barrels ,

At £125 a bottle it had better be good. But if you are relatively new to whisky you would be wasting your money.

 

[Profpointy]

I've not spent more than maybe £50 a bottle so far but had the odd swig of fairly amazing dearer stuff, and indeed other dearer stuff that I thought rather unpleasant.

So, if you fancy some Glenfarcas, see if you like their £45 or whatever 10 or 12 year old more than, something else at that price point, and when you find a distillery or perhaps a style (Islay, Speyside, West Coast or whatever) work your way up.

 

[rich p]

Others may disagree, but leaving aside personal preferences, there's a lot of smoke and mirrors about this kind of stuff.
I like a lot of different styles of scotch but it's hard to justify paying more than £20 - £35 a bottle for a Glenlivet or Glenmorangie and the like.

 

[Milzy]

As long as it's a step up from Bells I’d be happy.

 

[ozboz]

I’m not new to having a tot or three , I was ski-ing in Aviemore and stayed in Kingussie , tried a dram and liked it , but not to frequent , and always on the look out for something different , I’ve had expensive that was not to nice
‘peaty ‘ , I usually treat my self at Christmas to something special so I’m leaning toward this , a couple of years ago I bought a 15 yo Bushmills ,
very nice

 

[classic33]

I like to try different whiskeys on occasion , I’ve just watched a programme about a distillery called Glenfarclas . Of those in the know so to speak , is it as good as it claimed ? , I know not all tastes are not the same , but this came over as a special single malt , especially the 25 yo that had been stored in Sherry barrels ,

Why the "e"?

 

[Profpointy]

One thing that's caught me out recently are some of the "named" as opposed to "age" whiskies. Laphroig has always been a favourite so bought a so-say bargain bottle and was hugely disapointed, but then realised it was sold as "select" rather than the old "10 year old". A subsequent bottle of their dearer but still OK priced 10 was as good as I remembered.

On the Islay front Lagavoilin 16 is still awsome at normal single malt price though

 

[Profpointy]

I’m not new to having a tot or three , I was ski-ing in Aviemore and stayed in Kingussie , tried a dram and liked it , but not to frequent , and always on the look out for something different , I’ve had expensive that was not to nice
‘peaty ‘ , I usually treat my self at Christmas to something special so I’m leaning toward this , a couple of years ago I bought a 15 yo Bushmills ,
very nice

To be honest I prefer the cheap white label Bushmills to their de luxe black labelnor malt - and we can say whiskey for this example

 

[slowmotion]

All of the expensive ones smell like cat pee to me, but hey!, whatever floats your boat.

 

[swee'pea99]

I’m not new to having a tot or three , I was ski-ing in Aviemore and stayed in Kingussie , tried a dram and liked it , but not to frequent , and always on the look out for something different , I’ve had expensive that was not to nice
‘peaty ‘ , I usually treat my self at Christmas to something special so I’m leaning toward this , a couple of years ago I bought a 15 yo Bushmills ,
very nice

If you like a peaty dram, this from Lidl is amazingly good value. It's not quite as inyerface peaty as Laphroig (which some might actively prefer), but at a fair bit under £20, it's my occasional special treat.

 

[HobbesOnTour]

I like to try different whiskeys on occasion , I’ve just watched a programme about a distillery called Glenfarclas . Of those in the know so to speak , is it as good as it claimed ? , I know not all tastes are not the same , but this came over as a special single malt , especially the 25 yo that had been stored in Sherry barrels ,

I used to work in a Whisk(e)y Bar with over 240 whiskies from around the world. Glenfarclas was a distillery we recommended frequently and their products were consistently among the most sold.

Is it a special single malt? Yes, it certainly is.
Glenfarclas is the last independent, family owned distillery in Scotland - something special in itself. It is the only distillery (in Scotland) that still uses, exclusively, old sherry casks to mature its whiskies. (Other distilleries stopped using sherry casks exclusively because of the increased costs.) It was also the first distillery to release a Cask Strength whisky as part of its normal range.

One of the great things about Glenfarclas is the range - from a young Cask Strength (60%) through 10,12,15,18,21 & 25 year old versions. (Not sure if they still do an 8 year old). Unlike many other brands with different ages, the only difference in Glenfarclas is the age. This means that the full range is about the only way a regular person (without access to a distillery's warehouses) has to taste the effect of maturing on whisk(e)y.
For example, a 15 year old whisky from one distillery will taste different to its 12 year old brother/sister not just because of the age, but because they have used different casks (typically different ratios of bourbon or sherry), or the older has been "finished" in a different type of cask.

In my humble, the 25 year old is very interesting, but I'd be pressed to pay the money for it. The 15 year old, is, again, in my opinion, the best in the stable - it represents the best balance between the spirit itself and the influence of the wood. The 25 is "woody" in comparison. But even the 10 year old makes a very pleasant drink.

One thing to bear in mind with very mature whiskies is that one batch can be different to the next. Whisk(e)y is a natural product, so varies naturally from cask to cask. While it is relatively "easy" for distilleries to provide consistent batches of younger whiskies, it is a more difficult task to produce consistent older whiskies. There may be variation from one bottling to the next. Not so much with Glenfarclas in my experience.

On the "e" or otherwise.... it has become a convention that whiskey with an "e" is Irish or American and whisky is Scottish or Canadian. But that is just a convention of the modern era. A hundred and more years ago the "e" was dropped or included irrespective of the location of the distillery. Remember, up until the 1960's the concept of a distillery in Scotland producing, bottling and marketing its own whisky was pretty much unheard of, certainly on a regular basis. Whisky bonders & independent bottlers bought young & matured whisky from distilleries, bottled it and marketed it for their own needs. Naming, spelling (and quality) was erratic, to say the least! I used to have a load of old ads for whiskies (Irish & Scottish) that would make modern marketing departments explode in a fit!
(An interesting result of this approach was the Mafia infiltration of the Whisky collectables market in the 1990's with elaborate faked whiskies and an attempt to con several high profile distilleries - with one very notable success! )

 

[ozboz]

I used to work in a Whisk(e)y Bar with over 240 whiskies from around the world. Glenfarclas was a distillery we recommended frequently and their products were consistently among the most sold.

Is it a special single malt? Yes, it certainly is.
Glenfarclas is the last independent, family owned distillery in Scotland - something special in itself. It is the only distillery (in Scotland) that still uses, exclusively, old sherry casks to mature its whiskies. (Other distilleries stopped using sherry casks exclusively because of the increased costs.) It was also the first distillery to release a Cask Strength whisky as part of its normal range.

One of the great things about Glenfarclas is the range - from a young Cask Strength (60%) through 10,12,15,18,21 & 25 year old versions. (Not sure if they still do an 8 year old). Unlike many other brands with different ages, the only difference in Glenfarclas is the age. This means that the full range is about the only way a regular person (without access to a distillery's warehouses) has to taste the effect of maturing on whisk(e)y.
For example, a 15 year old whisky from one distillery will taste different to its 12 year old brother/sister not just because of the age, but because they have used different casks (typically different ratios of bourbon or sherry), or the older has been "finished" in a different type of cask.

In my humble, the 25 year old is very interesting, but I'd be pressed to pay the money for it. The 15 year old, is, again, in my opinion, the best in the stable - it represents the best balance between the spirit itself and the influence of the wood. The 25 is "woody" in comparison. But even the 10 year old makes a very pleasant drink.

One thing to bear in mind with very mature whiskies is that one batch can be different to the next. Whisk(e)y is a natural product, so varies naturally from cask to cask. While it is relatively "easy" for distilleries to provide consistent batches of younger whiskies, it is a more difficult task to produce consistent older whiskies. There may be variation from one bottling to the next. Not so much with Glenfarclas in my experience.

On the "e" or otherwise.... it has become a convention that whiskey with an "e" is Irish or American and whisky is Scottish or Canadian. But that is just a convention of the modern era. A hundred and more years ago the "e" was dropped or included irrespective of the location of the distillery. Remember, up until the 1960's the concept of a distillery in Scotland producing, bottling and marketing its own whisky was pretty much unheard of, certainly on a regular basis. Whisky bonders & independent bottlers bought young & matured whisky from distilleries, bottled it and marketed it for their own needs. Naming, spelling (and quality) was erratic, to say the least! I used to have a load of old ads for whiskies (Irish & Scottish) that would make modern marketing departments explode in a fit!
(An interesting result of this approach was the Mafia infiltration of the Whisky collectables market in the 1990's with elaborate faked whiskies and an attempt to con several high profile distilleries - with one very notable success! )

Nice one !! I'll get a bottle just not sure which , I may be up in Manchester for Rememberance Day , so if I do a visit to the Britons Protection may help , they have an incredible Whisk(e)y selection there , a bit like the bar you worked in , my preferred option to drink it is a large measure with one single. ice cube ! ,

 

[DaveReading]

Glenfarclas is the last independent, family owned distillery in Scotland - something special in itself. It is the only distillery (in Scotland) that still uses, exclusively, old sherry casks to mature its whiskies. (Other distilleries stopped using sherry casks exclusively because of the increased costs.)

Interesting. I've always been under the impression that the newly-distilled spirit was colourless, and the colour developed from the casks it was matured in.

What do the distilleries that don't use old sherry casks use instead ?