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Glengoyne 21 Year Old

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@AlanjpReview by @Alanjp

13th Jul 2011

0

Glengoyne 21 Year Old
  • Nose
    ~
  • Taste
    ~
  • Finish
    ~
  • Balance
    ~
  • Overall
    92

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Distribution of ratings for this: brand user

Well I’ve tried and reviewed both the 10 and 17 year Glengoyne malts, and done a few video reviews of others in their range, but now its time for me to move up from my previous reviews and look at the 21 year old.

This is matured in a Sherry cask, so already you expect a certain look and set of features to be apparent in the malt, and in a way it doesn’t disappoint there. The colour is clearly affected by the Sherry cask, it’s very dark to look at. To smell it is to catch a bit of the sherry, along with a bucket-load of spices and strong flowery notes.

When you take the plunge and take a sip, the first thing you notice is that even with this 21 year old the Glengoyne smoothness that I’ve experienced through the range is still there, its not been removed with age or the differing barrels/casks. The experience grows with time, as the sherry slowly appears, along with a sweet and fruity taste. It has the longest finish I’ve experienced with Glengoyne, and it lingers so long that it continues to give you a warm feeling for some time!

After moving up through the range, this is the highest quality of the 3 I’ve reviewed, it’s an excellent whisky that could and should be savoured.

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4 comments

@Col
Col commented

I totally agree with this review. This is such a smooth and beautifully rounded dram. The way it coats the inside of your mouth is quite incredible, it's like liquid silk running over your tonsils. Strong sherry infleuence and adorable sweetness. I toured the Glengoyne distillery this summer and tasted the 10, 17 and 21 year olds (as well as the cask strength 12 year old). All have that lovely fruitiness, which deepens and darkens as you go through the age range. Unless you're a totally committed peat lover I'd recommend trying something from Glengoyne.

13 years ago 0

@IainVH
IainVH commented

I've tried and enjoyed the 12 Yo and 17 yo (which I tried during the Glengoyne distillery tour) and having read your review of the 21 yo I think I'll be dropping big hints for this as a Christmas gift!

13 years ago 0

@systemdown
systemdown commented

Review is very consistent with my thoughts in terms of smoothness, balance and finish, personally gave it 93 pts. I spent a LOT of time nosing this one across two sessions. I got fruit cake (candied fruits), varnish (but in a pleasant way), citrus, cream, chocolate, a hint of roasted coffee, custard apple in addition to the expected sherry and sweetness.

Mouthfeel excellent, harmonious combination of sherry, citrus and malt and nothing out of place. Finish long, gentle and satisfying (leaving a soft, cerealy / biscuity taste) but can't help but feel if there were an extra dimension here (like a kick-back of citrus) it would have really added a couple of points to the score.

Side note: When first tasted, I got some "coal gas" on the nose and some off notes in the taste too that I couldn't fully identify. Still ended up scoring about 85 points, it was nowhere near as bad as the 10 year old version I'd tasted prior. Anyhow, after two or three weeks, upon second tasting of the 21 yo, ALL off notes had disappeared. Could this have been bottle shock? Granted, this was a 50cl sample bottle. Now I'm really keen to get a full 70cl bottle that I can enjoy next winter!

12 years ago 0

@GregLogan
GregLogan commented

System - I have noticed that sometimes there are some off smell and tastes, e.g. my HP18 came out sour and thin originally and somehow the chemical reaction with the air over a couple mos cleared that up very nicely (hoping the HP12 will catch up soon...:-( ). Likewise I just got some Glenfarclas 15 and was disappointed to get so much sour smell/taste - but I am expecting it too to disappear shortly...

12 years ago 0