This Glen Grant 1959 was a leftover of a cask bottled in 1999 by Samaroli (at least that’s what I’ve heard). In 2007 the bottles were relabeled by the people of Whisky Club Austria (Konstantin Gregoriadis and others). The label says “designed by Serge Valentin”.

Glen Grant 40 yo 1959 / 1999 (48,9%, Whisky Club of Austria 2007, sherry cask, 22 btl.)

Nose: almost everything you would expect from old dark sherry. Prunes, raisins, Portuguese Ginjinha, dark chocolate and roasted nuts. Balsamic syrup. All kinds of herbs. Something that holds the middle between fuel and dusty notes (bottle ageing?). High octane sherry without any possible off-notes. Mouth: very intense. Dried fruits but there are fresher notes as well (grapefruit, cherries, oranges). Some oak but never too dry. Nutty flavours again. Some pine resin. Mint. Finish: beautiful, long and very rewarding.

A very impressive and very intense Glen Grant. You need to be a sherry lover of course. No need to look for this bottle, I would say, although once there was a bottle on Whiskyauction.

Score: 93/100

Glen Grant 39 yo 1970 (49,1%, Duncan Taylor 2009, cask #3492)

Nose: excellent fruitiness, very warm and sensual. Melon, yellow plums. Quite honeyed with frangipane notes. Gooseberries. Exotic mango. Baked banana. A lot of vanilla. It also shows waxy / solventy notes. Great! Great! Mouth: hmm, a slight overdose of oak now, although the same punchy fruit basket is still there. Hints of vanilla cake. Nutmeg, mint, soft pepper. Very spicy although not too tannic. I prefer it neat, because the fruits are a bit drowned with water. Finish: medium length on drying warm oak.

These old Glen Grants… will we ever get enough of them? This is a great cask again, although on the palate it’s a bit heavy on spicy oak. Anyway the nose is stunning. Well priced: around € 130, but probably sold out in most places.

Score: 91/100

Glen Grant from the beginning of the 1970’s can be outstanding. This one is 36 years old and bottled for the German Whisky Fair.

Glen Grant 36 yo 1972 (56,3%, Duncan Taylor 2009 for The Whisky Fair, sherry cask, 209 btl.)

Nose: an exotic fruit basket. Tangerine and kumquat followed by mango, fresh figs. Ripe gooseberries. Dried apricots. Superbly candied, with hints of honeysuckle. Whiffs of vanilla (crême patissiere). Not unlike a Bowmore from the late 1960’s. Very round and polished, but it’s not all fruity because there are subtle undertones of oak polish and coal smoke, even something that reminds me of gas. Mouth: still very fruity (lots of grapefruit now, tangerine, passion fruit, papaya). Much more wood than on the nose which gives it a drier, slightly bitter profile. Still really exotic. Cake with honey. Chocolate. Very refined sherry. Finish: medium length, on oak polish, tangerine and the lightest hint of mint.

Around € 150 at the time, but sold out soon after the publication of the Malt Maniacs Awards. Quite a lot of wood (not surprisingly) but very very good!

Score: 92/100

ps/ It’s safe to say all of the Malt Maniacs Gold medal winners are stunning whiskies (we didn’t think otherwise of course). This Glen Grant and the Yoichi are top of the bill for me, with the Yoichi being the nicest surprise. Also, these two turn out to be the cheapest of the pack. Woohoo!

Glen Grant 38 yo 1972
(48,2%, Malts of Scotland 2011, sherry hogshead #8235, 148 btl.)

Nose: no sherry bomb, just a very big and ripe fruitiness with melons, yellow plums, quince marmalade, gooseberries, apricot pie… very jammy and honeyed. Precious polished wood. A little maple syrup, marzipan and toffee. A little ginger and mint. Very elegant. Mouth: a tad more oak now, but still plenty of oranges, tangerine, fruit cake and lovely honey to withstand the wood. A nice combo of dried fruits and exotic notes. Develops some toffee and mint as well. Very refined and even more jammy with some water. Finish: not very long, with cinnamon, tangerine and frangipane.

Old Glen Grant is quite reliable and this one is no different with its jammy fruitiness. Recommended. Around € 170.

Score: 90/100

Glen Grant 39 yo 1972 (51,4%, The Whisky Agency ‘Private Stock’ 2011, sherry cask, 87 btl.)

Nose: heavenly. Truly heavenly. Lots of fruity sherry notes: dried apricots, dates, prunes and raspberry jam but also more tropical notes of banana liqueur and pineapple. Very jammy, with lots of honey. Hints of vanilla. Big notes of beeswax and pollen. And wonderful oak polish. And milk chocolate. And marshmallows. Simply exquisite. Mouth: very thick again with rich flavours. Fruit jam all over. Creamy chocolate again. Spices, especially nutmeg and mint. There are quite some oak tannins and dry hints of herbal tea, in fact a bit too much for me. I had this at 93/100 at first, but the more I sipped, the more I was bothered by the wood. Finish: long, oaky and spicy, with all kinds of teas.

The nose is near perfect for me. If only it were a little less woody on the palate… I’m thinking the Glen Grant 1972 we selected at the Spirits in the Sky festival (to be bottled in the near future) is slightly better in this respect. Around € 230. As often with the Private Stock releases, hard to find (no wonder, only 87 bottles).

Score: 91/100

Glen Grant 39 yo 1972 (53,2%,
The Whisky Agency ‘Perfect Dram’ 2011, ex-sherry cask, 119 btl.)

Nose: big big notes of cherries (dark cherries as well as Portuguese Ginjinha liqueur made from Morello cherries). Lots of dried fruits like figs. Bramble and plums. Dark honey. Precious woods and hints of leather and eucalyptus. Heaps of oriental spices as well (which blend into a kind of incense profile). A drop of water brings out beehive notes and makes the fruits a little more tropical. Just great. Mouth: more oak in the attack, but quickly the fruits take over. Still plenty of cherry notes, plums and mixed red fruit jam, this time combining nicely with a chocolate coating. Fruit cake. Finish: long and elegant, fading on Mon Cherie and soft spices.

This Glen Grant 1972 is clearly more sherried than the MM Awards winning Glen Grant 1972/2009 by Duncan Taylor or any other (mostly refill sherry) expressions of GG72. The oak is well controlled. A real beauty. Recommended. Around € 210.

Score: 92/100

Merry Xmas everyone!

Glen Grant 38 yo 1972 (52,8%, The Whisky Agency ‘Grotesque Crocs’ 2011, refill sherry hogshead, 215 btl.)

Nose: a jammy and syrupy nose (Maple syrup and Belgian “Sirop de Liège”, made of pears). Lots of dried fruits (apricots, prunes) and honey. Quite some oak and spices (nutmeg, mint). Roasted nuts. A little wax. After breathing and the addition of a few drops of water it gets fruitier and more toasted at the same time. Very nice. Mouth: punchy and thick, with orange zest, citrus and heavy spices (nutmeg, cinnamon, ginger). Again a roasted element (coffee?) and some bitter chocolate. Drying towards the end. I prefer the palate without water as it seems to highlight the spices even more. Finish: long, with the spices a little louder. The fruits are less assertive by now.

This Glen Grant may be spicier and a tad less fruity than the award-winning 1972/2009 for The Whisky Fair. It certainly delivers, but the reaction to water (nose / palate) make it difficult to play around with. Currently on its way to a store near you. Around € 180.

Score: 88/100

Glen Grant 38 yo 1972 (52,4%, Whisky-Doris 2010, refill sherry cask #1650, 202 btl.)

Nose: this one is more expressive from the start. A nice honeyed fruitiness again but more dried fruits this time, with marmalade and syrup . The nutty element is slightly bigger, with coffee notes and caramel. Interestingly, the hints of new oak that I pick up make me think of old single grains while the mint / eucalyptus reminds me of certain bourbons. Very lively and entertaining. Water brings out a little vanilla. Mouth: more alcohol, more punch. It shows the same oranges, tangerines and yellow plums. Compared to the Thosop bottling, more spices (cinnamon, nutmeg, more pepper) and slightly less fruit. More balanced and more fruity with a little water. Finish: long, spicy with a hint of oak.

Another great Glen Grant. This one is slightly more oaky and spicy, which adds nice notes on the nose but also a certain dryness on the palate. Difficult to make a choice - I guess the higher strength is the main difference. Add a little water and they’re quite similar. Available from Whisky-Doris (€ 140).

Score: 89/100

Glen Grant 39 yo 1972 (48%, Whisky-Doris 2011, sherry hogshead #11395, 163 btl.)

Nose: This one has less alcohol and indeed it starts more like the Spirits in the Sky version with water. It seems more open – it doesn’t have as much cherry notes but its fruitiness is wider, like a red fruit compote with tropical touches in the background. Leather again. Maybe a little more spices and cocoa. Mouth: smoother but just as fruity and intense. Plums, blackberries, figs, all present. Extra raspberry (nice). Develops on cocoa, almost completely on chocolate in the end. Pretty much perfect strength and nicely supported by the spices without being oaky. Finish: long, sweet. Spices and chocolate.

I don’t have a favourite, both are equally great in my opinion. The lower strength certainly isn’t a downside and it’s 10% cheaper as well. Recommended. Around € 190. Available from Whisky-Doris.

Score: 92/100

This Glen Grant 1973 was bottled by Thosop – I’ll compare it to a slightly older Glen Grant 1972 tomorrow, bottled by Whisky-Doris. Both were matured in (refill) sherry casks. 

Glen Grant 37 yo 1973
(46%, Thosop 2010, sherry butt, 120 btl.)

Nose: very seductive with silky fruit notes and delicate oak polish. Ripe gooseberries, kumquats, lime and a little honeysuckle. Undertones of dried apricots from the sherry cask. A nutty / moccha layer as well. Fresh and maybe a tad shy at 46%, although it unfolds nicely over time. Water adds soft waxy notes. Mouth: rich fruity notes with lots of added spices this time (nutmeg, a little pepper and cinnamon). A whole array of oranges, tangerines, a little grapefruit and apricot. Mouth: long, fruity / spicy with faint moccha.

A classic Glen Grant: fruity and balanced, with gentle spices and a subtle sherry influence. Around € 140.

Score: 88/100

Glen Grant 36 yo 1973 (46,2%, Kintra 2010, refill sherry cask 6591, 24 btl.)

Nose: attractive start on dried fruits (figs, raisins) and honey. Apple compote and cooked peaches. Fresh whiffs of mint. A shy nougat / moccha note as well. Beeswax. Luxurious Speyside style. Mouth: still a decent amount of fruits but the oak kicks in as well. Oranges and spices (ginger, nutmeg, a little pepper). Some herbs. Fading on dark chocolate. Finish: long with chocolate, oak and a few herbal notes.

Another great Glen Grant form the seventies. Maybe a tiny bit more oak than other 1973 casks, but still well balanced with a nice sherry influence.
Around € 150.

Score: 88/100

This was a nice finale for our little Kintra series. There’s a new 18 years old Glen Scotia waiting to be bottled. Looking forward to it already.

Duncan Taylor has a whole series of 1970/1972/1974 Glen Grant casks, and a lot of the subsequent numbers (#16569 up to #16582) have already been bottled (but apparently none of the 1974′s are as good as the excellent 1972’s and 1970’s).

Glen Grant 35 yo 1974 (55,2%, Duncan Taylor 2009 for The Nectar, cask #16582, 168 btl.)

Nose: a bit shy at first, it needs some hand warmth to show its full potential. Fruity of course, with tangerine, lemon, apples… Rich honey and a bit of marzipan. A nice oakiness. Not as much oak polish as in the Glen Grant 1972 for The Whisky Fair, as far as I can remember. Mouth: cooked fruits with hints of vanilla. Less tropical than I expected. Honey. Marmalade. Significantly more spicy than on the nose with the oakiness becoming very noticeable (but still within limits). Finish: rather long, drying with lots of spices.

This Glen Grant 1974 is not as great as I hoped it would be. It’s very good however, and based on reviews of its sister casks, I think this is the best of the series. It turns out 1974 was a slightly lesser year than 1972 or 1970 for this distillery maybe? Around € 130.

Score: 86/100

ps/ The box contains an error. The bottle says “cask 16582″ but the certificate says “cask 16882″.

Glen Grant 36 yo 1975 (50,7%, The Whisky Agency ‘Fungi’ 2011, bourbon cask, 127 btl.)

Nose: leathery and spicy with some herbal touches. Very minty as well. Not exactly what I expected, although there are nice traces of warm oak and honey in the background. Oranges. Not bad, but hardly any tropical fruits or jammy notes. Mouth: rather creamy, half fruity, half spicy. Now there’s quite some apricot and citrus but they’re slightly overpowered by oak, ginger, nutmeg and herbal teas. Slightly bitter notes as well. Not as luscious as the 1972 expressions. Finish: more oak and spices (pepper, nutmeg) as well as a little apple.

Phew, my banker will be glad to hear this isn’t yet another stellar old Glen Grant. By no means a bad whisky though, just much more focused on oak and spices than my favourite (sherried) Glen Grant expressions from the same bottler. Around € 170.

Score: 86/100

It was bottled to celebrate the 60th Anniversary of independent bottler Douglas Laing.

Glen Grant 30 yo 1979 (52,5%, Douglas Laing 2009, 60th Anniversary bottling, brandy butt – sherry finish, 282 btl.)

Nose: starts on notes of burnt sugar, smoke and honey. Bread crust. Caramelized apples. Slightly dusty. Chocolate. Cinnamon. Interesting but quite winey. Mouth: full and rather winey again. Sour apple cider, a sharp maltiness and a lot of oak. Tangy herbal elements (cough syrup, ginger). Sweet / sour combo, some cocoa. Gets very bitter in the end, rather difficult to enjoy. Finish: long, with liquorice and herbs.

I guess this cask was selected for its unusual maturation and equally unusual flavours. A shame really, I could think of a dozen other Glen Grants that are better suited to celebrate your anniversary. Around € 240.

Score: 77/100

Glen Grant 17 yo 1993 (55,6%, A.D. Rattray 2011, bourbon cask #121916, 292 btl.)

Nose: pear, slightly artificial orange, banana… I would have guessed this was a lot younger. White peach. Soft garden flowers and grass. Just a tiny hint of oak. Simple, quite lightweight but not bad at all. Mouth: sweet fruits (pears, citrus, apple) but enough tingling spices to emphasise its 17 years of age this time (pepper, ginger, liquorice, soft aniseed). Quite some vanilla as well. Malt. Freshly sawn oak. Roasted almonds. Finish: slightly hot and spicy (something curry-like?). Rather long.

Is it young, is it old? It’s an in-between malt. It’s interesting enough and quite modern in style. I wonder how this would evolve if you kept it in wood for another 20 years. Readily available. Around € 65.

Score: 82/100

This was bottled at a 40% while my 1974/1979 version was bottled at 43%. As far as I know, 1979 was the only year in which Glen Grant decided to bottle a higher strength version (in a cardboard box) together with a normal version.

Glen Grant 5 yo 1968 (40%, OB 1973, 75 cl.)

Nose: this one is a bit more spirity and mineral than the 1974 version. The apples are still here, but most of the fragrant fruitiness is missing. A tad flatter and more grainy. A bit more sooty maybe. Mouth: weak start again. Malty. Apples again, but less expressive than the 1974. Simple with a herbal development towards the finish. Finish: not too long and quite grainy.

These old Glen Grants share the same profile. They’re simple but not bad. I prefer the 1974 edition, the nose is more attractive and the higher strength makes it more flavoursome. 

Score: 77/100

ps/ While these scores may seem rather low, I suggest to try them if you have a chance. They’re like oldtimer cars: to modern standards they may not be as complex or polished, but they have a character that we don’t see any more.

This is a good occasion to mention the Old Bottle Effect. While whisky will not change after being bottled, after many years the glass can start to interact with the spirit. There are a lot of doubts about this OBE (was it related to old distillation methods like direct firing, does the air inside the bottle have an effect or is it just the glass, does the light have an influence, etc.) but there seems to be a general consensus that there is an effect. Common OBE changes include lower peat levels, a certain dustiness / mushrooms and metallic notes.

Glen Grant 5 yo 1974 (43%, OB 1979
for Sileno Portgual, 75 cl.)

Nose: starts on porridge with a few mineral notes. Slightly metallic as well. Quite a lot of lemon. Wet books. Faint hints of motor oil. Interestingly, these notes are mixed with a nice tropical fruitiness of lime, apricot and passion fruit. Mouth: quite weak, with mostly the malt speaking. A few herbal notes come out, a few flowery notes and some liquorice (the wood, not the candy). Develops on apples. Not a high-flyer but not bad either. Finish: completely on apple juice (rather spectacular) but quite short.

Difficult to score. On the one hand, this is not up to modern standards in terms of density and flavour complexity. On the other hand I love those old noses and it drinks like lemonade. Sadly, I’m not living in Madrid any more, because this would have been perfect for a hot summer day.

Score: 81/100