Review | Glenfiddich 12 Years Old

This 12 Years Old is the largest selling Scotch single malt in the world. It forms the cornerstone of the distillery’s Flagship Collection and sits alongside age statements at 14-, 15- and 18 Years Old. The distillery is located in Fiddich Glen, a valley on the outskirts of Dufftown in the Speyside region of Scotland. The name means ‘valley of the deer’ in Gaelic.

Glenfiddich was founded in 1886 by William Grant with production famously beginning on Christmas Day, 1887. The Grant family, under the name William Grant & Sons, maintain ownership today. It is their success that has made Glenfiddich the biggest distillery in Scotland. The annual production is a massive 21 million litres. There are four mash tuns, 48 fermentation washbacks, 43 stills (16 wash and 27 spirit) and 45 maturation warehouses. The distillery also boasts its own cooperage and bottling plant.

Glenfiddich is the modern day pioneer of the Scotch single malt whisky category. They were the first distillery to consistently bring single malts to the international market in the early 1960s. Their list of firsts does not stop there. They were the first single malt to be sold in a travel retail shop at an airport in 1963 and first to open a visitor centre to the public in 1969. They were also the first single malt to sell over 500,000 cases of whisky in a calendar year.

Following the early successes, other distilleries followed their strategies but Glenfiddich had already taken huge steps towards cornering the market. It can be argued that without this innovation in the 1960s, the modern single malt market would not be what it is. Now, Glenfiddich accounts for nearly 35% of all single malt sales around the globe. It remains the world’s favourite and best-selling Scotch single malt

The Glenfiddich 12 Years Old is bottled at 40% ABV and is widely available in nearly 200 countries around the world. It can be found in supermarkets, convenience stores and specialist whisky retailers alike. a bottle should cost £38.

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Our Tasting Notes

The colour is bright golden yellow and the nose is fresh, sweet and fruity. Heady aromas of green apple and soft ripe pear rise first and are quickly joined by vanilla fudge and honey. There is also a sweet pastry-like characteristic, which when combined gives a feel of apple Danish pastry. There are also further aromas of coconut, hazelnut praline and delicate baking spices in the background.

On the palate this whisky is soft and gentle with a lovely fruitness and sweetness. Intense vanilla and soft fudge come through initially before being joined by the soft and ripe orchard fruits. This is reminiscent of baked apple and super ripe green pear both drizzled in golden syrup. The vanilla holds well and becomes softer and more custard-like with time.

Depth and complexity is added with further notes that evolve – think of white chocolate, dusty cocoa powder and a hint of cinnamon stick in particular. Further hints of soft apricot, warming baking spice (especially a scratch of nutmeg) and a gentle, drying oaky quality also develop nicely. The creamy mouth feel remains throughout.

The finish is of decent length and maintains the sweet, fruity and gentle approach. The sweet vanilla, green orchard fruits and golden syrup slowly fade and this allows the drying oak and elegant baking spices to shine. This, combined with some late white pepper, adds to the length.

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What’s The Verdict?

The Glenfiddich 12 Years Old is deliciously refreshing and easy drinking. It is easy to see why it has such a broad appeal around the world as it is so balanced, soft and sweet, and is reasonably priced. Some in the whisky commentary world run this whisky down, but its success is built on the pioneering nature of its ownership and the quality they put in the bottle year after year. It is this that has seen it get to its prime position in the first place. This is an iconic and classic Scotch single malt and one that demonstrates what the Speyside region is all about. Think you know it? Maybe it is time to revisit …

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