Long time since I’ve had a Family Cask from Glenfarclas. Maybe there’s too much of them, and they are too expensive to pop open immediately, so very few of them are able to generate some fame. Just my two cents.
This Glenfarclas 1997 was bottled from a single sherry butt #453 in the Winter 2017 releases.
Glenfarclas 20 yo 1997 (54,9%, OB ‘Family Casks’ 2017, sherry butt #453, 565 btl.)
Glenfarclas 20 yo 1997 (54,9%, OB ‘Family Casks’ 2017, sherry butt #453, 565 btl.)Nose: great nose. It’s fairly dry but with a tart fruity edge that works really well. Rhubarb, mirabelles, oranges, maybe buckthorn. Hints of dried apricots, almonds and toffee. Polished wooden floors, nice. Heather honey. A bit of earthy coffee beans in the background, just a touch of unlit matchstick in the background.
Mouth: plenty of sherry, with lots of spicy notes (pepper, clove), a bit of polished wood again, then more towards chocolate, roasted nuts and proper espresso, including the bitter edge. Great evolution.
Finish: long, fairly dry, nutty and a hint of smoky oak.
An elegant nose and a spicy palate. Plenty of sherry, perhaps more towards an old Amontillado than Oloroso in this case. Still available from Master of Malt.
Score: 90/100