A merry bunch of Glen Garioch


November 20, 2025

A merry bunch of Glen Garioch

Glen Garioch is probably the malt that has changed the most over the years and decades, from the grand, sherry-forward official bottlings of the 1960s, to the sublime peated versions of the 1970s, then moving on to orchard fruit concentrates, and even passing through more floral, lavender-led styles at the same time as its cousin Bowmore. Quite simply, Glen Garioch has done it all.

Red kite/Rotmilan, wonderful photograph by Claudio Gotsch, as seen on a Glen Garioch by Acla Selection

Glen Garioch 11 yo 2011/2023 (52.5%, Acla Selection, Classic, barrel, cask #2744)

A bottling for lovely Switzerland. Colour: white wine. Nose: we’ve seldom come this close to orchard-fresh apples and pears, not overripe, mind, but delightfully crisp and sharp. With water: small waxy and earthy touches emerge, along with a clear farmhouse cider note. Mouth (neat): faultless fruitiness with a touch of wax. Apples and pears once again, plus a hint of sour cherry that keeps everything lively and cheerful. With water: very good, with a little mint creeping in. A slight pot ale edge too. Finish: fairly long, fruity, uncomplicated, but flawless. Comments: what one might call an allrounder. Nothing to fault here.
SGP:551 - 85 points.

Glen Garioch 7 yo 2015/2023 (53.8%, Acla Selection, 10th Anniversary, cask #5124, 239 bottles)

We always feel at home in Switzerland. Colour: white wine. Nose: this time we’re greeted by flint and fresh motor oil, before the usual orchard apples and pears settle in, with a touch of banana for good measure. It’s interesting, because at this stage it strikes me as more complex than the 11-year-old from the same august house we’ve just tasted. With water: back to flint again. Mouth (neat): really lovely, with a variety of fruit eaux-de-vie and fresh lemon juice. It also sends a few rogue sparks up your spinal column and you find yourself thinking this would go beautifully with a platter of oysters. With water: cracking acidity! Finish: long and ultra-sharp, on lemon, green apple and half a drop of honey. Comments: all that’s left is to order that famous oyster platter.
SGP:561 - 85 points.

Glen Garioch 14 yo 2011/2025 (50.1%, Single Cask Nation, 1st fill bourbon hogshead, cask #160444, 197 bottles)

Colour: northern Californian chardonnay. Just kidding. Nose: very much in the same vein, only slightly rounder, with a little more soft honey (acacia) and peanut oil, plus touches of old paper, which we’re rather fond of. With water: the Williams pear comes through nicely. Mouth (neat): a fruit salad supercharged with eau-de-vie made from the same fruits. Not sure if that makes sense, but there you are. A bit of honey then soothes everything. With water: apples and pears. Finish: apples and pears. Comments: there’s great consistency across these vintages and ages.
SGP:551 - 85 points.

I reckon we could line up three dozen Glen Gariochs of roughly the same age and vintage, and still come up with the same score every time — 85 out of 100. But what can we do about it?

Glen Garioch 2015/2023 (53.5%, Swell de Spirits, Wild Nature Series, first fill bourbon barrel, cask #5078, 353 bottles)

Colour: pale white wine. Nose: what I’ve learned over time and many tastings is that the folks at Swell de Spirits favour aromatic and flavour precision, and rarely let their casks get in the way. Here’s yet another example, with a sharply defined pear and just a few drops of olive oil. Unstoppable. With water: a splash of ink and first rainwater added to the mix. Mouth (neat): spot on, razor-sharp, clean lines, lemon, cucumber juice, tart apple and a proper Sèvre-et-Maine muscadet. With water: more austere, more herbal, with some coffee notes barging in to stir things up. Finish: long, now almost drying, but still nicely tangy. Comments: what a quirky little beast! Definitely off the beaten path.
SGP:461 - 87 points.

Glen Garioch 16 yo 2009/2025 (61.3%, Scout Drinks, Taiwan, barrel, cask 657, 130 bottles)

New operator, great soul, immense passion and knowledge, what could go wrong? Colour: pale gold. Nose: this is once again a gentler version, waxy and almost jammy to begin with, yet it quickly veers towards candied citrus fruits, ripe mango and passion fruit, with even wee touches of camphor and eucalyptus creeping in. With water: hints of bitter almonds, absolutely spot on. Mouth (neat): very lovely, cassata, panettone, all manner of candied fruits, preserved mandarin, quince, marzipan… All of it perfectly aligned. With water: a few drops of triple sec and, would you believe it, a tiny oyster bringing a dash of coastal character. Finish: medium in length but delightfully fat, with wee herbs and seaweed. Aftertaste rather saline. Comments: faint ties to the fatty peatiness of decades past. Cracking little middle-aged Glen Garioch.
SGP:562 - 88 points.

Glen Garioch 12 yo 2012/2025 (53.6%, Dràm Mor, 1st fill Madeira finish, cask #1002, 129 bottles)

I’ve never truly understood—nor tried to, to be honest—why Madeira pairs so well with Scotch malt whisky. Perhaps it’s an island soul thing? Colour: orangey amber. Nose: cigars and orange zest, chalk and apricot liqueur, all lightly dusted with grey pepper and the softest mustard imaginable. With water: bitter orange liqueur, like the sort old Alsatians mix into their beer as an apéritif. Mouth (neat): exactly what one hoped for, just a drop of vinegar, mustard, walnuts, tobacco and candied citrus fruits, all in perfect harmony. Between us, this reminds me of Benromach—I only mention it because we’ve just tasted a few. With water: very salty and bitter, very Sercial, very much in fino-style Madeira territory. Our favourites, naturally. Finish: long, acidic and bitter, but in the best possible way. Comments: it converses wonderfully with the ‘Scout Drinks’, despite the great stylistic distance between them. In short, it’s damn good.
SGP:462 - 88 points.

Glen Garioch 12 yo 2011/2023 (52.2%, DramCatcher, cask #4909, 72 bottles)

There may not have been many bottles, but what matters is that the spirit is strong. Colour: white wine. Nose: a return to a simple yet lovely GG, all green apples and chalk. With water: apple tart dusted with ground cinnamon and brown sugar. Mouth (neat): soft, very pretty, on lemon, apple and honey. Nothing to argue about. With water: apple cake. Finish: same again. Lovely honey. Comments: don’t assume the brevity of this tasting note means we only moderately liked the whisky. Not at all, it’s very good indeed.
SGP:551 - 85 points.

Glen Garioch 14 yo 2010/2024 (53.1%, Maltbarn, bourbon cask, 165 bottles)

And my word, how much we’ve loved these labels! Colour: pale gold. Nose: peanut oil, custard, white chocolate and scones. There’s something microscopically precise about this. With water: closer to barley, sourdough, witbier, and also a few blossoms—honeysuckle, that sort of thing. Mouth (neat): just perfect, like beer eau-de-vie, pepper, tart apples and hay jelly. Few people know hay jelly, but it can be stunningly complex. With water: no change. Finish: fairly long, with very subtle fruitiness, almost cerebral. Comments: magnificent, simple yet complex (hey?), but in any case, demanding of your full attention. And that label! I know, total boomer stuff…
SGP:551 - 87 points.

Glen Garioch 21 yo 2003/2024 (53.9%, OB for Wu Dram Clan, 1st fill oloroso, cask #808, 681 bottles)

Colour: dark amber. Nose: is this rum? Or bourbon? Or some sort of hybrid? What a riot, there’s toffee, fudge, pralines and those assorted Christmas chocolates churned out by a multinational with ties to every supermarket chain (you know the one). Add a few drops of walnut stain and really, you’ve got quite the nose, dry, bold and very much in a Jerezian register. With water: grandmother’s walnut cake and gingerbread. A welcome break from all that globalised confectionery. Mouth (neat): powerful, almost violent, even though the ABV isn’t sky-high. We’re into essential oils, pine, thyme, linden blossom... Holy Suzy! With water: full-on resins, bitterness, and sheer concentration… Finish: very long and deeply resinous. Comments: a cheeky little GG that really shakes up your assumptions. We’ll need time to recover…
SGP:371 - 87 points.

Glen Garioch 29 yo 1988/2022 (46.2%, Thompson Bros., refill hogshead, 99 bottles)

I doubt a single bottle remains, but I couldn’t resist the urge to finally taste this baby of a very fine age. Colour: gold. Nose: this is dessert wine, late-harvest pinot gris, sauternes, dried fig, quince, dates, Tokaji aszú… Mouth: beautiful and all over the place, bitter to excess, but also gorgeously resinous, with flashes of brilliance and spells of solitary introspection. Right, the bitterness is extremely tricky to manage on the palate. Finish: long, all pine sap and rosemary running rampant. Comments: this is full-on punk rock, the Voidoids or Père Ubu in liquid form. Good luck.
SGP:271 - 84 points.

Glen Garioch over 30 yo 1992/2023 (57.9%, Artist #13 by LMDW, hogshead, cask #3068, 227 bottles)

We’re terribly behind on our Glen Gariochs! Colour: deep gold. Nose: cedarwood, eucalyptus, camphor, dried figs, ashes… With water: nothing further develops, everything was already said. Mouth (neat): spiced jams, peppered dried fruits, green tannins, cloves, green pepper… With water: herbal and spicy. Finish: long, with cumin and heaps of green pepper. Comments: an old malt that fully embraces its wood and herbal infusions; not the easiest, but absolutely full of charm.
SGP:361 - 86 points.

Let’s look for something simpler and more straightforward to finish with…

Glen Garioch 12 yo 2011/2024 (54.5%, James Eadie, UK exclusive, 1st fill oloroso finish, cask #374455, 175 bottles)

A six-month finishing. Fair play. Colour: deep gold. Nose: of course, walnut cake, cigar box, chicken broth and marmalade. Of course. With water: potting soil and clove-studded orange. Mouth (neat): honeys, malt extracts, bitter orange, old walnuts and black pepper. With water: gingerbread, chestnut honey and more black pepper. Finish: long, jammy, full of gingerbread and pumpernickel, with plenty of black pepper. Comments: these folks always do a very fine job, even when it might be just a touch too much, as it may be here.
SGP:461 - 85 points.

Check the index of all Glen Garioch we've tasted