Glenfiddich 12 Year Old Single Malt Review

Hailing from 'The Valley of the Deer', the Glenfiddich distillery was founded in 1886 by William Grant with the first spirit flowing from its stills on December 25th 1887. The distillery remains family owned to this day and the brand has the accolade of being the worlds most awarded single malt scotch, high praise indeed!

Go into any bar around the world and in all likelihood you will find one of the famous triangular bottles first introduced in 1961, it is indeed a staple of the bar world.

The 12 year old expression is Glenfiddich's entry level dram, matured for at least 12 years in both american oak bourbon barrels and european oak sherry casks before being brought together in oak marrying tuns prior to bottling. The good news is we have an age statement, well done Glenfiddich for not tossing this aside like some of your competitors have done for their entry level expressions. The bad news.....its chill filtered, has some colouring and is bottled at 40%. 

Colour:

Amber

Nose:

Quite light, floral and lots of pear - bordering on pear drop sweets

Palate:

Quite a thin mouthfeel - quite sweet, honey and vanilla, hints of pears and green apples. All the action takes place at the front of the tongue.

Finish:

Very short. Drying oak with the faintest hint of smoke

Overall:

One word: okay. This is not a whisky to get excited about but its perfectly drinkable and very approachable, probably the reason why it is one of the best selling single malt whiskies out there. It is however fairly unremarkable and forgettable especially considering the price point. Nowadays this is selling around the £35 mark in most supermarkets which for me is way too expensive. You are paying for a name and at £35 their are other 12 year old single malts I'd reach for every time before this one. In fact I'd say their are blends I'd rather buy before this expression. It can generally be found on offer in supermarkets throughout the year at £25 a bottle when it becomes a better proposition. At £25 it becomes an acceptable introduction to the world of single malt whiskies and one that will no doubt pique your interest into what else is out their to try.

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