Glenfarclas 18 Years Old

Glenfarclas from the distillery, an 18 year old, at 43%. Glenfarclas, the glen of green grass, is a richly sherried Speyside single malt. It holds some sixty eight thousand casks on site in dunnage warehouses, with stock from every year since 1953. Direct firing chars the wash a little, lending the rich, nutty depth Glenfarclas is known for. It has been run by six generations of the Grant family, one of Scotch whisky's last truly independent houses. Its spirit is matured almost wholly in sherry butts brought up from Jerez.

Run slowly off the spirit still, building a deep malt of dried fruit and dark sugar. It was fully matured in an Oloroso sherry cask, the wood deep in the rich spirit. Into oxidative maturity, slow air builds ripe esters and a darker chocolate, fig and date depth. Years in oak deepen the spirit to a darker gold, the body growing rounder and more resinous with time.

At an approachable 43% it is soft and fruity. Orange, raisin and a treacle edge, with dried fruit, fig and walnut from the cask. A baked apple and a warm cinnamon lift the middle. The finish is rounded, dark and spiced. This is Glenfarclas's deep, fruity Speyside style.