Glenfarclas Old Stock Reserve 34 Years Old 1969 Cask #2898

A 34 year old Glenfarclas, a distillery bottling, from 1969, cask 2898, at 41.7%, 197 bottles in all. Glenfarclas is a Speyside single malt, one of the last great family owned distilleries in Scotch. It has been run by six generations of the Grant family, one of Scotch whisky's last truly independent houses.

The spirit was distilled to a rich, generous cut, giving a deep, full bodied Speyside spirit. An Oloroso sherry cask held it, drawing the rich spirit on over the years. In its ethereal years the malt turns waxy and oxidative, faded esters and a whisper of sotolon over dark fruit. Vanillin and oak lactones from the wood lend vanilla and a soft coconut over the fruit. Long ageing turns the fresh notes towards date, prune and a dark, bittersweet chocolate. The cool, slow dunnage ageing loses little to evaporation, the spirit holding its depth. Maturation runs slow and even in the dunnage warehouses at Ballindalloch.

At a natural 41.7% it is full and rich. A rich, sherried sweetness, with dried fruit, fig and walnut from the cask. Beneath it run dried fruit, dark sugar and a warm spice. The finish runs long, full and warming. This is a Speyside single malt of real standing.