Glenfarclas 21 Years Old

A 21 year old Glenfarclas, a distillery bottling, at 43%. Glenfarclas is a deep, dark Speyside malt of dried fruit, nut and spice. Its water rises from the granite of Ben Rinnes, above the distillery at Ballindalloch. Its whiskies are bottled at their natural colour, without chill filtration.

The spirit was distilled to a rich, generous cut, building a deep malt of dried fruit and dark sugar. An ex-Bourbon barrel shaped it, vanillin and a soft coconut under the malt. Into oxidative maturity, slow air builds ripe esters and a darker chocolate, fig and date depth. Maturation runs slow and even in the dunnage warehouses at Ballindalloch. Years in oak deepen the spirit to a darker gold, the body growing rounder and more resinous with time. Long ageing turns the fresh notes towards date, prune and a dark, bittersweet chocolate. The wood frames the spirit without ever stripping the full Speyside body.

Bottled at 43%, it is rounded and full. A rich, sherried sweetness, lifted by a sweet oak. Fig, honey and a dark chocolate fill the middle. The close is rich and dark, fruit over a warm spice. This is a rich Speyside malt of dried fruit and nut.