The first time I tasted Glengoyne single malt was on the 14th of May, 2003. How do I remember that? Simple. Because it was one of the best drams I’ve ever had. Eleven and a half years later, and – quite literally – thousands of whiskies later, that bottling of Glengoyne still features high up on the shelves of my memory bank. Mind you, it was no ordinary Glengoyne – it was a 1971 vintage OB release; a single cask, bottled as a 27yo, Cask #4855. T’was one of the all-time greats, and from a period in the late 1990’s when Glengoyne put out a series of single cask bottlings that blew most of the competition away. But the point is, first impressions go a long way, and I’ve remained good friends with Glengoyne ever since, also visiting the distillery in 2011.
Whisky & Wisdom recently attended a Glengoyne vertical tasting, courtesy of the new Dan Murphy’s store in Double Bay, Sydney, which – it must be said – features an impressive whisky section. (I say section, although department might be a more apt description). The event was held at The Woolloomooloo Bay Hotel, and was hosted by Daniel Millhouse of Dan Murphy’s and the ever affable and enthusiastic Philip Mack. Philip is not an official Glengoyne brand ambassador, but certainly should be, based on the night’s presentation.
It had been some time since Whisky & Wisdom had tackled the Glengoyne portfolio in a single sitting (the last time was at the distillery back in 2011). It’s often said that a whisky always tastes best at its source, but even with the bias and romance of tasting the whiskies at the actual distillery that day, on tonight’s evidence, it is apparent that Glengoyne has lifted the quality bar higher in the last few years.
The evening’s line up featured – in tasting order – the 10yo, the 12yo, the 15yo, the Cask Strength (58.7%), the 18yo, and the 21yo. We’ll spare you the academic reproduction of our tasting notes and just make some general observations shortly, but first, it would be remiss not to state a few notable features about the distillery:
- Glengoyne was founded in 1833, and sits about a 30 minute drive north out of Glasgow.
- It’s officially a Highland whisky, but only by a few metres – the production buildings sit on the northern side of the A81 road, which is the Highland line in this neck of the woods. (The warehouses sit on the other side of the road, which – strictly speaking – is in the Lowlands, potentially giving this distillery a slight case of split personality!)
- Glengoyne is entirely unpeated.
- Glengoyne claims to practice the slowest distillation in Scotland, quantifying it at five litres per minute for the run off the spirit stills. In addition to ensuring this achieves a relatively gentle boil in the spirit stills, it also encourages increased contact time with the copper, thus producing a fruitier and less meaty spirit. (Copper strips sulphur compounds from the spirit, which would otherwise contribute to a more savoury, meatier spirit. For comparison, check out anything from Craigellachie, which uses worm tub condensors and aims to minimise the spirit’s contact time with copper).
And so, to some thoughts about the evening’s offerings…
The 10yo is that classic, entry level dram, albeit one with a bit of style and attitude. At 40% and a 50/50 mix of both European and American oak, it displayed great balance of orchard fruit and cereal malt, and I felt this expression best showcased the DNA of Glengoyne’s actual spirit.
The 12yo, in contrast, came across this evening as a fairly dull and lifeless affair. Despite a slightly higher ABV at 43%, both its nose and palate were relatively flat in comparison to its younger sibling.
The 15yo kicked up a gear, with some beautiful fruit and spice on the nose, as well as the tingle of sherbet. The sherry influence was now quite noticeable on the palate, and this age statement beautifully straddled the middle ground between a young, vibrant malt, and a more genteel older dram.
Being quite the cask-strength connoisseur (someone else’s description, not mine!) the Cask-Strength was the dram I was really looking forward to. I wanted to love this one, but found myself only liking it. The balance wasn’t quite in the sweet spot, and it was a little petulant at times. No age statement with this, and one can’t help but feel there are some younger casks in the mix.
The 18yo was…well…near perfect. What a sensational whisky! With a high proportion of 1st Fill sherry butts in the vatting, this had all the delicious oloroso traits that would cause any Glendronach or Glenfarclas fan to question their loyalties. The sherry was clean, the palate was rich and balanced, and the dram displayed just the right quantities of sweetness, spice, and oak. A genuine winner.
The 21yo had a stunning nose. 100% 1st-fill sherry casks was the information supplied on the night, and the nose displayed wonderful traits of fruit, citrus, and spice. With just those extra years under its belt, this dram also featured some healthy oak. The effect on the nose was gorgeous, and the 21yo won my “Best Nose” award for the night. As you might expect, that extra bit of age translated to a slight drying bitterness on the palate and, whilst the 21yo is certainly a sensational, top class whisky, I preferred the balance and roundedness of the 18yo.
Thanks are due to Dan Murphy’s and our two hosts for the evening for their generosity and hospitality. In addition to the six great whiskies, the event also featured generous and tasty portions of food – croquettes, cheese & spinach triangles, mini beef & coleslaw hamburgers, oysters, and a cheese platter! Consider that you got all of this for the outrageous attendance price of…zero dollars!!!…you can only conclude that it was a sensational evening and that DM’s accountants weren’t watching! 😉
Cheers,
AD
PS…Glengoyne appears in Whisky & Wisdom’s feature article, “The most beautiful distilleries in Scotland”, which you can read here.
PPS: Update – The above was posted in 2014. (When whisky blogging was in a very different space and place, as you can tell by the writing style, which – thankfully – we all moved on from!). Whisky & Wisdom attended a media event showcasing the malts of Ian Macleod Distillers in July, 2022, which featured some malts from Glengoyne’s stable. You can read that update and some more information about the company here.
