Cadenhead’s Glen Grant 13yo
Sherry Cask Finish | 61% ABV
Score: 6/10
Good Stuff.
TL;DR
Big on sherry, light on Glen Grant
Awards Season Is Upon Us
If the bloke in the hat had his way, we’d be buying up Glen Grant left, right and centre. While a growing proportion of the whisky community has walked away from Jim Murray’s Whisky Bible and the antics that surround it last year, what was fairly clear wasn’t his style of tasting notes, which have been a consistent feature. No, it was the consistent appearance of Glen Grant in the annual awards listing.
A surprising pattern of awards, regularly trumping illustrious names on Speyside and across Scotland. Influencing many to seek out the latest Glen Grant and then ponder if this was indeed the pinnacle of Scotch whisky. Personally, I don’t find the current core range of Glen Grant anything to get excited about. They are solid whiskies and enjoyable in parts; much like a stroll in the gardens near the distillery. For that duration, a pleasant distraction but one you won’t return to immediately to try again.
That’s unfortunate, as Glen Grant is one of the sleeping giants of the whisky industry. A distillery that had a wonderful reputation, founded on quality sherry releases and an inventory that would make the British Museum glow red with jealousy. When I used to purchase the square bottles of Glen Grant from the 70s, I ignored the age statements (some as low as five years), safe in the knowledge this was great blending and more often than not, older stock would be included. If Glen Grant was bottling such-like today, you can forget about the razzmatazz that surrounds Macallan, Glen Grant would be the destination.
But that’s not the case today and I do ask, “What’s gone wrong?” Mistakes from the owners perhaps? A mismanagement of the cask inventory, or a poor wood policy? An attempt to focus on Glen Grant’s lighter qualities, rather than something that previously worked? Having sat through a recent Glen Grant online tasting, I was fairly nonplussed by the experience and also quite saddened. My heart may have lamented, but my head questioned this more modern style of whisky and why?
I suspect those glorious warehouses full of old casks are simply no more. That’s just the way it is nowadays. The whisky rumour mill hinted that Glen Grant is actively buying back casks from independents. That suggests the inventory just isn’t there, or perhaps looking at the core range are they trying to do too much? Don’t focus on giving us an age statement for every industry benchmark i.e. 10, 15, 25 etc. Just focus on giving us a good affordable whisky with enough character and vitality to prompt us to go back for another bottle.
Gordon & MacPhail continue to showcase and support Glen Grant. They have the casks to do so and the prices to match. For the rest of us, we’re left with the head scratching of the core range. Ask yourself when was the last time someone raved about a Glen Grant in person? I find that fact quite disappointing. I’m always eager to check out the latest expression – especially if it comes from an independent bottler, because if Glen Grant is buying up casks, these indie releases will become rare and offer us the natural opportunity to check in on the distillery.
“I love awards - particularly if they are for me”
Step forward Cadenhead’s. My favourite independent bottler, and one that’s increasingly bottling an assortment of finishes, and probably learning on the job somewhat when it comes to this new dynamic. Today’s bottle is a 13 year old, distilled in 2009 and finished in a PX sherry cask for just under a year. The danger of finishing, especially in smaller casks, and in some respects more applicable to the standard of sherry casks we’re seeing nowadays, is the brute force of a handful of sherry flavours. The great sherry casks, those that have harboured sherry for generations, are rarely seen nowadays and are hugely prized. Instead, we have seasoned casks that are cheaper to produce, where the sherry is often a lesser quality and is used to flavour the wood and then bottled as vinegar or a cheap as chips sherry.
These casks will bring a sherry influence to the whisky, but a rapid, precise and focused one. Lacking the subtle nature and layers of flavour seen previously. These casks can still uplift a whisky, take its contents in a new and positive direction, but deployed wrongly, or in the pursuit of colour or sherry bomb status, and the end result in your glass can mean you’re not a whisky drinker, but a sherry drinker; and a bad sherry drinker at that. At least sherry is cheaper!
So, I’m on edge when I see a short duration finish. OK, the word finished, is the big clue, or rested seems to be gaining acceptance now as well. The proof is always in the pudding and the final result. At least this sherry cask we know from the outturn produced 342 bottles, meaning we can remove the worry about the use of an octave. Bottled at 61%, there’s also the interest that when Glen Grant filled this cask it was at a much higher strength than the staple 63% we see being filled across Scotland. That strength is where the wood and spirit feel most comfortable, where you can confidently bottle at a younger age.
I accept that logic, but I’m also aware that cask filling at a higher strength can bring its own unique interactions with the wood and a more long-term approach. Heard of the Brora special releases and the Rare Malts series? A very fortunate accident in some respects, as many distilleries across Scotland were not cutting down the spirit as a cost-cutting measure in the 1970s and 1980s. A knock on effect was these casks could rest for longer and had sustained wood interaction at a higher strength, as well as some wonderful distillates.
Edinburgh Cadenhead’s
Review
Glen Grant 2009 PX sherry finish, 61% ABV
£70 available from Cadenhead’s
Thankfully, for you and I, this Glen Grant is available for £70 and doesn’t come in a fancy box, or assisted by a tweed-wearing ambassador singing its virtues. You don’t see too much Glen Grant being bottled by independents recently, that’s an unfortunate situation if this vital avenue is closed off. Whether that’s because of the distillery buying back casks, or just a lack of casks in warehouses in general is open to debate. What Glen Grant is out there in the independent realm, is often well-aged and £200+, which means this Cadenhead’s release is a rare opportunity. Hopefully, a positive experience as well.
Nose
Macerated cherries, sticky barbecue ribs with plenty of honey glaze. Rubbed brass, earthy ginger, rusty. There’s no burn here whatsoever. Red apples, chilli flakes, tobacco and chocolate. So, yes, we have a very active PX cask here. Maple syrup, Play-Doh, black peppercorns and red cola cubes all follow. Adding water brings out some soot, basil, dark brown sugar, orange candy and rhubarb.
Palate
Big and earthy, but surprisingly drinkable at 61% and an oily texture. Dirty carrots, redcurrants, strawberries and damp wood. Cinnamon bark, freshly laid tar. More earthy ginger with some fiery tint and a mouthful of rust. Water reveals toffee and honeycomb.
The Dregs
This is a big whisky, but not one I’m totally enamoured with. Yes, it’s a modern finished variant, so if you enjoy those, then you’ll be at home here. However, this is more cask than Glen Grant and I’m a little disappointed by that outcome. A less active cask might have given us more symmetry and a marriage worth celebrating. As it stands, this Glen Grant is one for the sherry fans out there and still keeps the mystery of the distillery intact.
Score: 6/10
My thanks to Edinburgh Cadenhead’s for the sample.
Tried this? Share your thoughts in the comments below. DM
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