Speyside At Last!!!

First off...I really must apologise! It's been aaaages since I last posted on here. I'll use the excuse that I have moved house and jobs but really it's just been procrastination!

However, I'm back now and ready to fill you in on my latest whisky exploits! Earlier this month my partner Dawn and I embarked on a road trip up to the highlands and as part of this trip we of course found the time to take in some malt whisky. This blog entry is likely to be one part whisky review and one part travelogue!

Our first stop off was to The Singleton of Glen Ord. This was entirely unplanned as we were on our way from Drumnadrochit to Torridon on the west coast. As we hadn't booked on a tour and there was quite a wait we unfortunately never got to see inside. However the visitor centre was really quite impressive and the distillery building was quite a sight to see. It's no wonder they produce so much spirit here!

After a great stay in Torridon (if you haven't been, I'd highly recommend you make the trip) it was time to head for Speyside! Armed with a selection of distilleries I wanted to visit I was so excited! Finally it was time to visit the heartland of Malt Whisky. However I quickly learned a flaw in my plan...I hadn't forseen just how busy Speyside distilleries would be. As a result my grand tour turned out to be just one distillery!!!

For those of you who haven't visited Speyside it's hard to describe the scale of whisky production here. As we drove along the A95, literally hugging the River Spey every mile or so there was another brown sign for one distillery or another. We pased the gorgous, tiny Ballindalloch, the frankly epic Tormore (I wish you could do a tour here just for the building alone!) before we arrived at the place that was at the top of my list...Glenfarclas!

The long drive from the main road up to the distillery with the stunning hills in the background just built the anticipation. I was as giddy as a child on Christmas morning! I pretty much skipped into the visitor centre only to find out when I asked about a tour the next available slot would be in 4 days' time! Completely gutted!!!

However, here is yet another reason why Glenfarclas are awesome...even though we couldn't do a tour, we still got to taste some whisky in their frankly stunning tasting room. Called the Ships Room due to the fact that the room is decked with wood panelling from the RMS Empress of Australia it was the perfect place to enjoy a dram! Here are my tasting notes on what I got to try...

Glenfarclas 10YO (40% ABV. Retails at around £30-£35)

Nose - Wonderfully light and sweet. Notes of toasted hazelnuts and fudge
Palate - Super sweet and sugary with undertones of moist wood.
Finish -  Medium with a sweet saltiness reminiscent of liquorice

Overall, a great easy-drinking whisky. A typical speysider! A must for everyone's collection.

Glenfarclas 15YO (46% ABV. Retails at around £55)

Nose - Here's where the sherry really cuts through. Lots of lovely butter cream notes in here too
Palate - The higher ABV really gives this a kick on the palate. I got loads of white pepper and chilli spiciness. It's wonderfully thick and oily in the mouth and a lot less sweet than the 10YO
Finish - Medium and much sweeter than the palate. I got bakes apples and cinnamon here

Overall this is a lovely whisky, better in my opinion than the 10YO but I'm not sure it is worth the extra £20 a bottle.

Glenfarclas Distillery Exclusive (64.1% ABV. I can't remember how much it was at the distillery but it retails at around £200 online)

This whisky was created to celebrate 35 years service of the assistant distillery manager Archie Jackson. Only 656 bottles were made. It's cask strength but at 64.1% it's one of the highest strength whiskies ever bottled by Glenfarclas. It comes from first fill sherry butts hand picked by Archie. Having spent 10 years in wood.

Nose - Woah! Lots to go at here! I get black cherries and Madeira cake. No attack from the super high ABV. Lots of richness with honey and dark chocolate notes in there too
Palate - Really complex and full. Very thick mouthfeel, like treacle on the tongue. A lot less spice then other Glenfarclas expressions which is surprising given the ABV. The sherry really balances this out and gives lots of lovely sweet undertones. I get more rich chocolatey flavours and that Madeira cake cuts through again
Finish - Incredibly long and lingering. Super warm with hints of grapefruit

This is a really great dram! There is so much to like about this. The rich warmth of the sherry kick twinned with the higher ABV, the depth and variety of flavours on the palate and the long lingering finish. Wonderful stuff! Would I pay £200 for it? Probably not, but it is an exceptional dram!

Glenfarclas 21YO (43% ABV. Retails at just shy of £100)

I didn't actually get to sample this at the distillery, however this is one of my all time favourite drams so I bought a little bottle at the shop to enjoy back at the hotel that evening.

Nose - So much here! I got wet slate and thick hot tar. Also notes of blackcurrant and walnut skins
Palate - Such a thick mouthfeel but not too fatty or chewy. I got butterscotch, treacle sponge and jammy sweetness. So smooth too!
Finish - Sooo long and complex! Super sweet lemon meringue gets you at first, followed by dried apricots then there is a smokiness that gets you right at the end like the embers of a dying fire

Gosh! I love this dram! Worth every penny in my view. You should try this whenever you get the chance!

It was great to visit Glenfarclas, but gutting that I didn't get to do a tour. Note to self: plan ahead next time!

So, after Glenfarclas it was back on the road with one ambition in mind...find a distillery where there was space on a tour. First we tried Aberlour, but to no avail. The next available tour was a week away! After that it was time to try The Macallan.

I had read that The Macallan had completely overhauled their distillery, however I was not expecting what I saw. It looked less like a distillery and more like an airport. Now, call me an old traditionalist but I like the look of old distilleries. Big old victorian brick buildings with pagodas. There is something so pleasing and reassuring about them. The Macallan is completely the opposite ,a state of the art, eco friendly behemoth of a building! With a massive green roof it looks more like The Teletubbies house than a distillery. You can read all about the new distillery here:
https://www.scottishfield.co.uk/food-and-drink-2/whisky/new-140million-macallan-distillery-and-visitor-centre-open/

Yet again I was out of luck when it came to a tour. We could have paid £100 each for a deluxe tour but given that Dawn was driving and therefore not drinking that seemed more than a little steep! Instead we contented ourselves with a wander around the visitor centre and a peek through the glass to see the huge stills in action. I have to be honest, I was a little disappointed. The whole thing was super decadent and super premium, but it lacked any soul. It just didn't feel like I was in a distillery. It was good to see it though and of course I got my picture taken outside of Easter Elchies House, the iconic image that bedecks the label of every Macallan bottle!

After The Macallan the great search for a tour recommenced. We headed for Dufftown. Surely we could find a tour there, right?

Find out in my next blog...

Until next time, sláinte!