Glengoyne 1972 / 38 Year Old / The Perfect Dram

The Perfect Dram is an imprint of The Whisky Agency, one of the best independent bottlers active today. This one is a Glengoyne, filled in an ex-bourbon cask in 1972, matured for 38 years and bottled in 2011, yielding 165 bottles.

Glengoyne was originally called Burnfoot Distillery when it was founded in 1833 by George Connell, and was renamed (and renamed again) when it was finally called Glengoyne in 1905. At that time it was owned by the blenders The Lang Brothers, and is today owned by Ian McLeod & Co.

The colour is a very light straw. Lemon curd dominates the nose, with kumquat, rosehips, thick honey and vanilla custard. Tropical fruits galore: papaya, overripe banana, a hint of lychee. Caramel chews. A buttered almond croissant. With some time, cotton candy. A drop of water brings out some oak with some sourdough notes. Very dessert-y, chock full of sweet fruity notes.

On the palate there is more banana, strawberries-and-cream and a very light hint of peat in the far background. Again, we have every tropical fruit you can think of, but with a slight herbal edge to it. Water adds a bit of heather while bringing out the peat. Very complex and delicious.

The finish has fennel, more lemon and toasted oak. It's not every day you get to sip on a 38 year old single malt; it's certainly one of the very oldest whiskies I've ever tasted. Very slightly on the sweet side for me, but it's a lovely, rich fruity dram. Not quite The Perfect Dram, but close.

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