...where distraction is the main attraction.

Friday, August 18, 2017

Speyside Region (Glenfarclas) 20 year old 1994 Whisky-Fässle

Our house has fleas. And we have no pets. Those bloodsuckers hitched their way inside on our clothing and now have taken up residence on both floors. Three people live in this house, but the fleas are only aware of one. Me. Because I am one delicious piece of foot.

In order to combat the fleas, I did some scientific research and came to a conclusion. I'm going to drink so much that the alcohol content of my blood will poison every jumping bastard that bites me. It's science. It's got to work.

Here's a sample of another Glenfarclas that couldn't be called "Glenfarclas".


This time it's from a sherry butt. And the bottle had a duck on it. At least Whisky-Fässle didn't say it was from Speyside's finest distillery, because enough with that silliness.

Distillery: Glenfarclas
Region: Speyside (Central)
Independent Bottler: Whisky-Fässle
Series: Ducks?
Age: 20 years old (1994-2015)
Maturation: Sherry butt
Alcohol by Volume: 53.2%
Chillfiltered? No
Colored? No
(Sample arrived via swap with My Annoying Opinions.)

NEAT
The nose starts of nice, but blurry. Some shoe leather, cherry candy and mint. But a lot of air opens it up. Earthy and herbal up front, prunes second. Fresh pear. A good whiff of gunpowder. Small floral note. The palate is bracingly bitter, like a grapefruit and Campari combo. Walnuts, salt, lawn, a slight tarry woof. A quirky aquatic note meets caramel sauce. It finishes with sour cranberries and mochi with bitter chocolate. Peaches, lawn, herbal liqueur and salt. Quite long.

WITH WATER (~46%abv)
The nose reads more like a classic sherried malt. More dried fruit, canned peaches and toffee. The palate still has that bitter belt to it. Some fresh stone fruits, tart citrus and a hint of grains. It finishes bitter, fruity and salty.

WORDS WORDS WORDS
That bitterness is fascinating. MAO reads it as oak. And though I don't disagree, it doesn't taste like American oak. Perhaps they used actual European oak for this cask? It's a great bitterness though, if that's one's style. Add that to the salt and gunpowder and we have an entertaining whisky here. But it's the fruit that lifts it up and provides dimension, ultimately. Water tames the beast, but not entirely. I might even prefer it diluted. Good fruits.

Happy Friday. We made it.

Availability -
Only to be found at Shinanoya, oddly, two years later

Pricing - was around €110 (w/VAT), costs almost twice that now
Rating - 87