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The tasting event took place at the Blue Morel*, Morristown, NJ, on Oct 12, 2017, and was entertained by the Glenfiddich Brand Ambassador Alan Roth.

Glenfiddich is located in the Speyside, a famous area for whisky in Scotland. The distillery,  created by William Grant in 1887, has small size spirit stills, which is uncommon in Scotland. They claim that it increases the contact of the spirit with the copper during the distillation, in order to remove bad flavor to create a better whisky. Glenfiddich is the worldwide best-selling Scottish single malt, then probably the way it is made has something to do with this ranking.

 

There was a four-course menu prepared by Chef Dennis Mathews, to go along with the whiskies offered at the event.

TASTING:

Glenfiddich, 14 YO, 43%:

 

MAKE: Matured at least 14 years in ex-bourbon American Oak casks, the whisky is finished  in new American Oak barrels from Kentucky, deep charred.

NOSE: Vanilla, brown sugar, toffee and ripe peach and apricot.

PALATE: The wood comes loud and clear, with candied orange peels.

FINISH: Medium and sweet with hints of chocolate (half bitter)

MY TAKE: A good whisky for the full ex-bourbon cask maturation lovers.

 

Glenfiddich, 15 YO, 40%:

Image by www.glenfiddich.com

 

MAKE: The process to make the Glenfiddich 15 YO Solera is quite unique and has started in 1998, fulfilling the vision of David Stewart, the Malt Master. The spirit begins its journey in a traditional 15-year maturation either in American Oak ex-Bourbon casks or in European Oak casks ex-sherry. In addition, the whisky that has matured in ex-Bourbon casks is finished in new American oak casks to strengthen the oak influence. The two spirits (from American oak and from European oak) are then blended in a Solera vat, a big container.  The first Solera vat was filled in 1998. The spirit spends some time in the vat (upon distillery decision), then is transferred for a part only in a tun in oak to ensure perfect blending before bottling. The Solera process means that only part of the Solera vat is emptied, the rest stays and receives the next batch of 15-year matured whisky.  This means that the Solera vat now contains part of the original spirit and the rest of new addition, creating a blend of same whisky with some little age difference. At a given time, this vat is emptied again partially, put in a tun  for blending and then bottled. The vat partially empty receives another batch of new 15-year old whisky that creates more age blending. As it goes over and over, one can say that there is still some of the original 15-year whisky that first filled the vat in any bottle of Glenfiddich 15. This process allows to create a great taste consistency overtime. See “DID YOU KNOW?” below for the full description of the Solera process used for sherry.

NOSE: Soft, sweet, plum preserve and cooked apple, with some honey.

PALATE: Smooth and sweet. Sherry, raisins and dark fruits (plum and berries). Spices (ginger and hint of cinnamon) and some chocolate after

FINISH: Sweet, some spices and lingering oak.

AWARD: Double Gold medal in 2013 at the San Francisco World Spirits Competition, category Single Malt Scotch – 13 to 19 Yrs

MY TAKE: A very unique craft for a whisky with rich aromas. It seems that the more you taste, the more you can find.

DID YOU KNOW? The Solera process is a system of maturation initially used in the production of sherry, that originated from Spain at the end of the 18th century. This system intends to ensure a high consistency of the product over time. Barrels are arranged in different layers from top to bottom of the warehouse. Each layer contains wine of the same age, the top being the youngest, and the bottom the oldest, the only one that gets to bottling. Principle is rather simple and works through periods. First period (that can vary from a few months to a year), only the bottom layer is filled with new wine. Second period, the layer next to bottom is filled, and so on until the top layer is filled by new wine. Until the top layer is filled, no bottling happens. When all layers are filled, the bottom wine is aged one period more than the second layer, which itself is one period older than the third layer, and so on. The bottling can happen; only part of the bottom layer (called solera) is bottled, typically no more than 35%. The empty part of the solera layer is refilled by wine of the second layer, which creates an empty space in the second layer that is filled by the third layer and so on. The top layer is then filled by a new wine batch. This creates an age blending through the layers that ensures a complete consistency of the final product. The Spanish say that “old wine educates young wine”. This is rather work intensive, but certainly worth doing.

Glenfiddich, 18 YO, 40%:

Image by www.glenfiddich.com

 

MAKE: Matured in matured in ex-bourbon casks (about 3/4) and Oloroso sherry casks (about 1/4).

NOSE: Cooked apple, Hay, and oak with hints of chocolate

PALATE: Dark fruits combined with oak and sherry.

FINISH: Long, sweet.

AWARD: Gold Outstanding medal, 2014, at the International Wine & Spirit Competition, category Scotch Single Malt – Speyside

MY TAKE: A rich Glenfiddich well balanced and elegant.

 

Glenfiddich, 21 YO Gran Reserva, 40%:

 

MAKE: Matured in ex-bourbon casks for 21 years at least, then finished in casks used previously to age Caribbean Rum from three different providers.

NOSE: Extremely rich, with exotic fruits (mango, banana), vanilla, some dark brown sugar, hints of malt and oak..

PALATE: Rich and sweet, spices (ginger, pepper),  malt and Oak

FINISH: Long, with oak and foliage

AWARD: Best Scotch Malt whisky 21 YO or over, 2015, International Spirits Challenge Awards

MY TAKE: Very well balanced and refined whisky, to enjoy in a warm and quiet atmosphere. Very nice to be paired with a dessert containing chocolate and/or banana.

 

 

*Blue Morel has been ranked #2 in the 2017 Balvenie contest of the “best whiskey bar” in NJ. No wonder that Richard Ramos, the General manager, has worked hard to achieve this. He has started 9 years ago to create whisky events in his exclusive bar and restaurant.

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