Glengoyne 21yo...

Glengoyne 21yo (43.0%): With a price tag of $130 here in California Glengoyne 21yo is one of the best price/value ratios out there these days and also pretty widely available worldwide. I admit that I am a fan of the distillery's current line-up in general as well as their limited releases like Teapot Dram batches, discontinued expressions including long time favorite 17yo and special single cask bottlings like the unforgettable 11yo Oslo Whisky Festival 2008 cask and many more. I also visited Glengoyne a few times in the last decade where I always had great time and felt incredibly welcomed. What can I say, I surely have a soft spot for the distillery... Maybe because of that I was keeping this 21yo expression on my shelf for a special occasion (or excuse) and finally that moment arrived a couple of weeks ago and was it worth the wait..! Today I found some time to sit down and edit my notes and here they are...

Color: Dark amber, chestnut honey with thin legs.

Nose: Like walking into the damp cellars of a bodega... Mold covered walls, a copita full of old and dusty Pedro Ximenez and decaying wood staves. Overripe strawberries, fruit cake and touch of sulphur. Nutmeg, cinnamon sticks and Zante currants. Mayan hot chocolate, dates and wild mushrooms. Such a pleasure taking the time to nose this whisky. Worn out leather upholstery and wet tobacco leaves.

Palate: Chocolate sour beer, sour cherry juice and red pepper flakes. Cloves, red bush tea and candied orange peel. Very old hardwood furniture, cranberry jam and chocolate flavored pipe tobacco. Quince paste and Kriek lambic beer. Absolutely delicious...

Finish: Medium-long with red pepper, tobacco and dark cherry cola.

Overall: Stunning whisky for the price you pay for... It's spicy, fruity, tart, sweet and incredibly luscious. Would I prefer it at a slightly higher abv? Yes, I definitely would but nevertheless this bottle is a solid proof that actually a 21yo sherry cask matured whisky can be sold in this day and age at this price instead of thousands and thousand of dollars. Kudos and thanks to Ian Mcleod Distillers... In the end I am still skeptical that this whisky will stay at this price range in today's market and I think I should go ahead and get a back-up bottle sooner than later. Like I said it is too good to be true.

Price: $130

93/100