Glenfarclas The Family Casks 40 Years Old 1978

This official Glenfarclas, a 40 year old, from 1978, cask 747, at 43.1%, 166 bottles in all. Glenfarclas is a Speyside single malt, one of the last great family owned distilleries in Scotch. It was licensed in 1836 under Robert Hay and bought in 1865 by John Grant for 511 pounds.

Drawn from a thick, heavy wash, for the rich, sherried make Glenfarclas is known for. A refill bourbon hogshead held it, keeping the full character to the fore. In its ethereal years the malt turns waxy and oxidative, faded esters and a whisper of sotolon over dark fruit. The full spirit deepens with time, the cask drawing out its darker register. The wood frames the spirit without ever stripping the full Speyside body. Years in oak deepen the spirit to a darker gold, the body growing rounder and more resinous with time. Active wood drives the maturation, the cask deep in the malt.

Bottled at a cask strength 43.1%, it is deep and concentrated. A rich orchard sweetness and dark sugar, lifted by a sweet oak. Dried fruit and a treacle sit behind the spice. It finishes long, full and fruity. This is a deep, sherried Speyside single malt.