Glenfiddich 125th Anniversary bottled 2012

To celebrate the 125th anniversary of the distillery (well, sorta, because it was founded in 1886, but the first spirit poured from the stills on Christmas Day 1887), the Glenfiddich 125th Anniversary was launched in 2012. It is said to be mildly peaty – an homage to the production methods of 125 years ago. The peated spirit matured on bourbon casks, while the rest of the mix contains quite some sherry casks (which is customary at Glenfiddich). This limited edition will set you back around 135 EUR.

Wow! This is indeed startling. The peat immediately puts its foot down and offers wet hay, earthy notes and smoldering wood. Underneath hides the sweetness in the shape of overripe apples, roasted nuts, rice pudding with vanilla. The sweetness becomes louder all the time. Very nice balance between the sweetness and the peat on the one hand, and the influence of the bourbon and sherry casks on the other. Very interesting, lovely nose!

Mildly oily on the palate. Again the peat draws the attention with sweet ashes, a bit of syrupy tar and loads of toasted oak before a lot of spices (ginger, camphor, cloves, cinnamon, licquorice and vanilla) precede the apples. This must be what peaty apple sauce tastes like.

The finish is short to medium long on ashes and cinnamon.

Well, the least you can say is that this is a unique Glenfiddich. The peat is quite big and outspoken, which makes me wonder if this is a young whisky. But it certainly is nice.

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