Glenfarclas 15yo
Official Bottling| 46% ABV
Score: 4/10
Some Promise.
TL;DR
A good whisky handled poorly - is batch variation to blame?
A Decent Enough Dram But Too Much Heat
I’m suffering from a bit of buyer's remorse following my recent purchase of two Diageo special releases to split with my brother-in-law. Yes, the 2021 bottles were just released in Ontario after likely sitting in a warehouse for several months awaiting the $300-a-head special event release dinner and tasting entitled “Scottish Virtuosity.” No mention of the D-corp’s name in the event description, just a selection of single malts from the finest distilleries in Scotland – all coincidentally filled into the same bottles and presented in the same packaging.
I wasn’t going to buy any special releases this year due to D-corp’s much discussed price-driven approach to premiumization, but marketing works its magic even when we are aware of the effect it has on our primitive human brains. The remorse isn’t based on my experience with the products, as I haven’t received them yet, but I’m already fairly certain the experience with the liquid alone will not justify the price paid. I’ll be happy if I’m wrong, and if I’m right… at least the bottle tubes are pretty. I’ll have a nice new container to store my oats.
A couple of years ago I decided to start actively learning, buying, drinking, and talking more about Canadian whisky. It’s very rewarding to grow an appreciation for how things are done in my part of the world. I’m proud of Canada’s traditional distillers, as well as the newer innovative ones popping up all over the country. Now, my guilty heart is telling me I should also take a break from buying Scotch whiskies made at distilleries owned by large multinational conglomerates in favour of those produced by smaller, privately owned and/or family run operations.
I’ve started my new focus with a bottle of Glenfarclas which was generously given to me as a Christmas gift from the aforementioned brother-in-law, but before getting to the review, for my own self interest, I first wanted to do a search to identify other independently owned distilleries in Scotland.
To compile my list, I started with the Scotch Whisky Association’s distillery map, narrowing it down with a few simple criteria: 1) the distillery must be privately owned; 2) it must bottle a liquid that can legally be called single malt scotch whisky; and 3) the whisky must be currently available for retail purchase somewhere in the world. Here is the result:
Ailsa Bay
Annandale
Ardnamurchan
Balvenie
Benromach
Bladnoch
Daftmill
Edradour
GlenAllachie
Glenfarclas
Glenfiddich
Glengoyne
Glengyle
Isle of Arran (Lochranza)
Isle of Raasay
Kilchoman
Kingsbarns
Springbank
Tamdhu
Wolfburn
There’s definitely some room for interpretation, and differing levels of private ownership, for example Isle of Arran is owned by a group of private investors, while William Grant & Sons (Ailsa Bay, Balvenie, and Glenfiddich) is a multinational corporation – they even own beloved Canadian whisky brand Gibson’s Finest. Others on the list are owned by a single billionaire. Honourable mention to Angus Dundee who, although not private, only owns two distilleries; Tomintoul and our cult favourite Glencadam.
“Glenfarclas is one of the supreme Scotch whiskies, the Speyside malt that attracted a lot of attention when someone at a tasting described it as “going down singing hymns.”
It’s important to use your purchasing power to fund what you want to see more of in the world. Looking at this list of privately owned distilleries I see many that offer quality products at fair prices, a few well established generational producers, and many others that are new to the game and might not be quite there yet, but will be in the near future. If we don’t want to see 12 year old single malts in non-informative shouty packaging asking twice the price of what’s reasonable, we need to let them stay on the shelves.
Going forward, I’ll be making an effort to purchase bottles from these distilleries, where available in my location, as there are many that I haven’t had the opportunity to try. Please comment below if you notice any errors or would like to add to the list.
Decent malt with not too much to say, burns a bit on departure
Review
Glenfarclas 15 year old, 46% ABV
$113 in Canada (£55 in UK), widely available
This bottle of Glenfarclas 15 was purchased in Ontario and has a bottling date of 17/03/21.
The Glenfarclas distillery was first licensed in 1836 by Robert Hay, although illicit distilling is known to have taken place at the distillery for decades before it was licensed. Following Hay's death, John Grant purchased the distillery in 1865 and is still owned and operated by the family today.
There was a period in the 1890s where the Grant family sought outside investment and partnered with Pattisons Ltd. At the time the whisky industry was experiencing a boom in growth, fueled by borrowed money, and Pattisons Ltd expanded quickly with aggressive marketing budgets. Overstretching combined with fraudulent accounting practices resulted in Pattison’s going bankrupt in 1898 when their debt was called in. Known as “the Pattison Crisis”, this event had a knock-on effect on the rest of the Scotch whisky industry. Glenfarclas experienced financial difficulties during this period but managed to survive with the help of the supportive Caledonian Banking Company. Needless to say they have since kept ownership of the distillery in the family.
Let’s give it a taste!
Nose
Not overly complex; musty grapes, ripe stone fruit, apple juice, caramel apple, oak and slight baking spice notes. There’s a green vegetal note, and wet wood in a damp basement. Overall, fruit and a certain dingy wetness dominate the nose.
Palate
Gentle entry with a low mellow bass note, but balloons into a long, harsh, hot finish. Ripe fruit, oaky, winey and tannic, there is a bit of umami. The hot finish has apple peel and green leafiness to it and completely takes over the mouth.
The Dregs
When it comes to sherry casks, I tend to gravitate towards ones with more chocolatey notes, of which this Glenfarclas has none. There are some nice aromas and flavours present, and there’s a good weight and feel to it, but the finish leaves a lingering harshness that does not lead me into another sip. I’ve previously given out one 4/10 score, to a Canadian whisky, Bearface – a mediocre whisky handled very well. Arriving at the same score through a different route, the Glenfarclas comes across as a good whisky handled poorly. I imagine this is down to batch variation and I’d like to try other Glenfarclas expressions, but after this experience I’ll be waiting for a recommendation from a trusted source.
Score: 4/10
Tried this? Share your thoughts in the comments below. AM
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