The GlenDronach Parliament Aged 21 Years Single Malt Scotch Whisky, 70 cl

Product Information

A 21 year old Glendronach released in 2011, and aged in a mix of sherry casks (Oloroso and sweet Pedro Ximenez dessert sherry). The result is really very good indeed. Interestingly enough, this whisky has no political associations. It is, in fact, named "Parliament" after the collective term for a group of rooks - and there is a Parliament of Rooks living in the trees near GlenDronach... Nevertheless, the presentation of a whisky surely gives us an insight into the attitude and mindset of a producer when bottling an expression (be it a special release or a core range product). The distiller and blender are saying to us, “This is the best product we can deliver. This is our spirit, and we are proud.” With more and more new distilleries releasing inaugural bottlings and beginning to distribute their core range, we are seeing these three requirements met from almost all of them. They aren’t produced for blends: they are setting up their stall and proudly displaying their liquid in as natural a form as they can.

Nose (22/25): Very strong sherry. Dark chocolate. Cocoa beans. Dark rum. Nuts. Almonds. Walnuts. Spicy oaks. Let it air and it settles down nicely. Becomes more crisp. More sweeter. More brown sugar. Muscovado sugar. There's a hint of sourness. Cold cuts. Dark jam. Honey. Toast. Quite a typical Oloroso nose with some complexity thrown in thanks to the PX. The 12yo expression of Glendronach is increasingly well-regarded by experts and like its 15yo older brother, this is a complex and involving whisky. Pallet: muscular and dense, coffee Christmas cake, crystallised ginger rum again with ham, pepper coffee some wood and gentle herbal influence. With water regular ginger more mocha/coffee and ham.

What's interesting about this review is that I managed to conduct a little experiment (which I saw Ralfy do in his review of the same) and came up with a surprisingly positive result.

B and B-: Good and above average. The best of the mass market whiskeys fit in this category, as do the bulk of the premium brands. A B- is three stars. As stated elsewhere, ths table and its accompanying calculations are inaccurate. Fact is that GlenDronach was mothballed in 1996 and reopened in May 2002, but it would be nice if the calculations had been properly verified.Glendronach has, in recent years, been increasingly recognised for the exceptional quality and value of its single malts. Its history has seen the distillery burn down and founder James Allardice declare bankruptcy, followed by a scattering of ownerships before the brand’s current stewardship under the Brown-Forman Corporation. Can I tell these apart? Sure. But can I tell if one has been processed differently from the other? Of course not.

I have been saving this bottle for a special occation, and yesterday i just finished one of my last exams. It turned out to be a wonderfull whisky, which really got my creative juices flowing. Hence here is my first review: In any case, I’m off to buy a 12yo Glendronach. That’s something I didn’t expect to say anytime soon. Thanks, Hamish and Dougie– this deep dive was needed.Now I know that no chill filtration and 46% ABV isn’t the be-all and end-all in whisky. There are expressions out there that don’t meet these presentation standards but still deliver a great experience when tasting. By Country Mixed Country Blend (3) Australia (3) Canada (8) Denmark (1) England (17) Germany (3) India (6) Israel (2) Japan (23) Mexico (1) New Zealand (1) South Africa (1) Sweden (6) Taiwan (5) Like all the GlenDronach expressions the whisky has an oily, viscous character with a pronounced palate weight. This whisky shows that long Sherry cask aging straight away, as a pour of it shows a dull and reddened amber coloring. It’s a look that is quite bourbonesque, in fact. This swish left behind a leggy curtain.

you can only show the youngest whisky on the label so some whiskies can be called 12 yo and contain 40 year old… Matured in a combination of Oloroso and Pedro Ximenez sherry casks for a minimum of 21 years. Bottled at 48%, the 'Parliament' is named after the colony, or ‘parliament’, of rooks that have been nesting in the trees that overlook the GlenDronach distillery for almost 200 years. Palate: Full, syrupy body. Restrained tongue burn considering its ABV. Rivers of molten dark chocolate greet the tongue, studded with plump figs and dried apricots. Oaky in a controlled, precise way, perfectly supporting the layers of fruit and sweet. In a word, perfect. By Cask Type Bourbon Cask (33) Mixed Maturation (14) Oak Cask (4) Rum Cask (3) Sherry Finish (6) Virgin Oak Cask (1) Virgin Oak Finish (1) Irish Whiskey Finish (1) Madeira (Fully Matured) (1) Madeira Finish (1) Refill Peated (2) Stout Finish (1) Vermouth Finish (1) I have been saving this tiny little sample bottle. What better time than the week before Christmas – before everything gets crazy? GlenDronach is among my favorite distilleries, and may make my favorite sherried malt (for the price). The 18 was a mixed bag for me, but it is not every day that I get to taste a malt with over 20 years of maturation, let alone an official bottling.

The finish is long and lingering with sweet dried fruit notes, a bit of milk chocolate and a persistent pepperiness. No notable traces of sulphur. Than again, I've never had any bad encounters with sulphur before that were too dominant and ruined the whisky. Overall: If you couldn’t tell from the over-the-top language in the above notes, this is an incredible whisky. One of the best, literally, that I have ever had. It strikes all of the bells for me: Sweet and fruity sherry without being overly resinous or sulfurous. Decadently full flavor without excessive alcohol burn. Mountains of chocolate, to degrees I’ve never experienced in a whisky. It starts confidently, strides across the palate without faltering and finishes with elegance, retaining its integrity. A whole, full, round, complete whisky. If we decide not to exercise or enforce any right or provision of these Terms, such decision shall not constitute a waiver of such right or provision.