Scotch Whisky Review #395: Glen Grant 15 Year (2019 Bottling)

Distillery: Glen Grant.

Region: Speyside.

Age: 15 Year. Bottled in 2019.

ABV: 50.0%.

Price: Sample courtesy of /u/dustbunna.

Color: 1.2, Chestnut/Oloroso Sherry.

This review was done blind, the only hint was “unpeated”.

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Nose: It’s quite fruity with orchard fruits and citrus leading the way. Lemon, pomelo, pears, and crab apples are what I wrote down. There’s a bit of vanilla and some malt barley as well. Towards the back is a hefty, gassy note that reminds me of what I get often from a distillate made with the use of a worm tub.

Palate: Mouthfeel is quite heavy on the tongue. Flavors that come out are vanilla and citrus zest, largely lemon zest, and not a whole ton else. There’s this heft and almost gassy-like character to this that again reminds me of a worm tub distillery. When water is added, it somehow becomes super acetone-y. With enough water, that acetone goes away but at that point, there isn’t a lot of flavor left.

Finish: Medium to short in length. It’s a touch boozey with vanilla and lemon zest. That heftiness once again pops up here.

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Guess: The hint was unpeated. Given the hefty, gassy notes throughout I’m going to say it’s from a worm tub using distillery for sure. Probably on the younger end, somewhere between 12-14 years. There is a bit of oomph to this so ABV certainly isn’t low, I’d guess ~45-50% ABV. Balmenach perhaps?

Reveal: Glen Grant 15, 2019 Bottling. 50% ABV

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Conclusion: Oh man, I was so certain this was from a worm tub distillery. It has so much of that distinct heft and gassy character I’m so used to from the likes of Balmenach, Craigellachie, and others. I haven’t had a lot of Glen Grant (or the now-closed twin in Caperdonich) but this was very different from the others I’ve had. The nose was really, really inviting with all of those lovely orchard fruit and citrus flavors mixing in with a bit of that heftiness. The palate was a bit simple, but very pleasant until I added water. The finish was just a continuation of all of it. Quite a pleasant dram, just don’t add any water to it!

Final Score: 80 pre-water. 65 post-water.

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Scotch Whisky Review #395, Speyside Review #144, Whisky Network Review #549

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Scoring Legend:

• 96-100: The perfect dram, nectar of the gods.
• 90-95: Near perfect, there is something truly special about this whisky.
• 85-89: Amazing, will always try to keep a bottle of this in my collection (if feasible).
• 80-84: Very Good, maybe only one minor nitpick about the whisky keeping it here.
• 75-79: Good, quite enjoyable to drink.
• 70-74: Solid, wouldn’t go out of my way to get it.
• 60-69: Meh, still drinkable.
• Below 59: If you have a bottle of this, start cooking with it instead.