Review by: The Muskox

Merry Christmas! Hopefully your estranged relatives and rambunctious kids haven’t completely drained you of energy. I’ve got a lovely Christmas gift from my good buddy and whisky demigod Brad. This is my second review of Glengoyne, having very much enjoyed the 18-year bottling. How does this older-than-me whisky measure up?

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Distillery: Glengoyne.

Bottler: Official bottling.

Region: Highlands.

ABV: 48%.

Age: 25 years.

Cask type: European oak sherry casks.

Price: N/A.

Color: Dark amber. Natural Color. Non-chill-filtered.

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Nose: Rich and decadent. Not entirely musty though: there’s a certain citrusy freshness. Plenty of orange peel and brown sugar. Lots of vanilla, caramel, and dark chocolate. Buttered pastries, like pain au chocolat or something. Caramel apple and bananas foster. A little perfumey potpourri. Clove, nutmeg, cinnamon, and gingerbread. Raisin and fig. Nut brittle. A touch of worn leather and old-sherry-cask sulfur.

A little bit of water brings out a lovely raspberry note. Some orange pekoe tea and marshmallow, as well.

Palate: Syrupy texture. Darker and mustier here than on the nose. Starts with orange, jammy red berries. The sweetly sherried arrival morphs into darker wood tones. The cooked-fruit syrup notes give way to oak, clove, and vanilla. Plenty of dark chocolate now, and a touch more of that sulfur. Walnuts. It does an herbal twist on the end, into tannins, hops, leather, and anise. Brown-sugar-glazed ham??

The water strengthens the fruit syrup. More raspberry, banana, and pineapple now. There’s a mocha thing starting to appear.

Finish: Long and off-sweet. It lightens up a touch as the wood fades. Walnuts and dark chocolate. Orange peels and orange bitters. Some mango here, and passionfruit. Old libraries. Sweet brown sugar. Clove, cinnamon, and more of that potpourri perfume. A little bit of black tea.

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Conclusion: This is pretty fantastic. The quality of the sherry casks used is immediately evident. It did that Glengoyne herbal twist in the middle that I’m used to from that distillery, but it felt a little bit more incorporated than it was in the 18 year old. I also liked what a few drops of water did, but be careful of course. I’m not sure I prefer it to GlenDronach 21, but it’s close.

Final Score: 88.

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Scoring Legend:

• 95-100: As good as it gets. Jaw-dropping, eye-widening, unforgettable whisky.
• 90-94: Sublime, a personal favorite in its category.
• 85-89: Excellent, a standout dram.
• 80-84: Quite good. Quality stuff.
• 75-79: Decent whisky worth tasting.
• 70-74: Meh. It’s definitely drinkable, but it can do better.
• 60-69: Not so good. I might not turn down a glass if I needed a drink.
• 50-59: Save it for mixing.
• 0-49: Blech.