Glendronach 19 Year Old Single Cask Whisky Review!

A 19-year old Glendronach single Oloroso cask, cask #2406, distilled in 1991 and bottled back in 2011, as part of the fifth batch of SC releases. They're now up to Batch 17, so that's going back a while!

The Glendronach single cask bottlings have attained legendary status over the last few years. Unfortunately, the prices have increased massively as well, particularly for the older bottlings as you'd expect. In fact this Highland distillery's general popularity has exploded, alongside the current worldwide whisky boom, with the resulting pressure on their maturing stock demanding new and different expressions at younger ages or without an age statement. I'm not at all concerned by the latter, but some of those newer expressions are way outside the realm of what fans of the distillery would consider to be their house style. From a peated expression with no discernible sherry cask influence (reviewed here), to a spate of PX sherry or port cask-matured / finished releases - including a peated port finish - that are definitely not what you'd expect from Glendronach. They've also more recently introduced a couple of expressions bottled at 43% rather than the previous 46% baseline, including a couple that are travel retail / duty free exclusive. But all of that is just the reality of the current market, with the constantly increasing demand for sherry cask whisky and the subsequently increasing scarcity and prices of those casks creating a demand on supply that is not easy to fill. From Macallan to Aberlour to Highland Park and many more, almost all Scotch whisky distilleries that were previously famed for their sherry matured styles have had to change and adapt. And many have changed so much that they have lost a huge portion of their following in the enthusiast arena.

Thankfully that doesn't apply to Glendronach though, since they have re-released the much-loved 15-year old Revival expression (albeit with changes in cask recipe and overall style), and while becoming increasingly scarce the 18-year old Allardice and 21-year old Parliament can still be found for a reasonable price. A lot of that aforementioned pressure has been made all the worse thanks to the distillery being mothballed (closed) from 1996 to 2002. That meant that some of their age stated expressions contained stock that was significantly older than the stated minimum, which has of course now created more pressure on any older expressions. Looking at the 21-year old Parliament, an example bottled in 2019 must be at least 23 years of age, thanks to the distillery closure. Likewise the 18-year old Allardice, which if bottled in 2019 must also be at least 23 years of age, until the stock distilled after the distillery reopened finally comes of age in 2020. This was also the reason for the aforementioned 15-year old being discontinued for almost four years, only becoming available again in late 2018. All of this had distillery fans concerned about the future of Glendronach's single cask releases, which only worsened after the distillery was purchased by American spirits company Brown Forman in 2016, and the appointment of a new Master Distiller, Dr. Rachel Barrie, in early 2017. They shouldn't have worried, though, because each new batch of single cask releases seems to be larger than its predecessor, there are still older casks being released, and the last few batches have also included exotic cask types like port and virgin oak. So there doesn't seem to be any sign of the program slowing down, and Dr. Barrie is certainly not resting on her laurels. Which is good news!

This particular single cask expression was released before any of that had ever been imagined. Back in 2011 the distillery already had a significant following, largely thanks to then-Master Distiller Billy Walker (now looking after Glenallachie) who had purchased the distillery in 2008, but the entire whisky world was quite a different place - particularly in terms of pricing and popularity. This bottling was part of the fifth batch of releases, with the first batch released in 2009, and was distilled in 1991, when Glendronach's four pot stills were still direct-fired, and when they were still floor-malting a portion of their barley requirements on site - including a small amount of peat being thrown into the kiln. That malting floor was decommissioned in 1996, prior to the distillery closure, and the stills were converted to internal steam coils in 2005, a couple of years prior to it being sold by Pernod Ricard to the aforementioned Billy Walker, who I would argue actually resurrected the distillery properly. The bottling that we're looking at today is from Cask #2406, a Spanish Oloroso sherry butt (500-litre cask), which was bottled at a cask strength of 55.4% ABV. Interestingly it was bottled just one month shy of becoming 20 years of age, with a yield of 532 bottles, and is non-chill filtered and naturally coloured. The sample for this review came from a generous fellow whisky nerd. Incoming sherry bomb! 

Glendronach 19-year old Single Cask, #2406, 55.4%. Highlands, Scotland.
Distilled 11/1991, fully matured in a single Oloroso sherry butt, bottled 10/2011. Non-chill filtered, natural colour, 532 bottles.

Colour: Dark amber.

Nose: Sweet & spirit-y, lighter than expected as well. Sweet vanilla, dark chocolate, red apples, stewed peaches & plums, and a few dried cherries for good measure. A little leather, brown sugar and walnut with more breathing time.

Texture: Medium weight, sweet and syrupy but dries out quickly when a decent whack of spirit-y heat kicks in.

Taste: Not as sweet as the nose suggested, but still quite syrupy. More dark chocolate, more of a creamy chocolate mousse here, plus some brown sugar and black pepper. More red apple and some spicy wood notes with spirit-y heat fighting them back.

Finish: Medium length. The chocolate, apple and spicy wood notes carry through, but so does the spirit-y heat. Some more black pepper, leather and stone fruit further on, with a little toffee and more fruit trying to break through.

Score: 3.5 out of 5. But only just.

Notes: It's tasty, of course, but also certainly a little on the hot side, and certainly not as complex or satisfying as most sherry-matured Glendronachs of this age. Each of these single cask bottlings is unique, of course, which is all part of the fun, but this one isn't quite on the level of most that I've tried to date. There's plenty of chocolate and syrupy sweetness, but it doesn't have the sheer volume of flavour that I've come to expect from these older single cask expressions. So it's not quite the sherry bomb that I was hoping for on Christmas eve, but it's still an enjoyable Glendronach. Besides, if they were all the same, that'd spoil the fun!

Merry Christmas and/or Happy Holidays folks, and as always many thanks for reading.

Cheers!