WF’s Little Duos, today Glengoyne


August 13, 2025

WF’s Little Duos, today Glengoyne

We miss seeing much of Glengoyne these days; twenty years ago, the famous zero-peat Highlander was a regular presence on WF. But that was another time…

(Glengoyne has the amusing (and rather marketing-friendly) quirk of distilling its whiskies in the Highlands but maturing them in warehouses on the other side of the road, in the Lowlands.)

Glengoyne 18 yo (43%, OB, +/-2024)

Nice to see this one now at 43% vol., as more recent versions of the 18-year-old were still bottled at 40% vol., which did feel rather stingy in the current climate. Here we have a marriage of first fill and refill sherry. Colour: deep gold. Nose: it’s a fact, this is quite a splendid nose, very gentle, very classical, with a subtle maltiness complemented by soft honeys, orange liqueurs, lemon peel, a twenty-five-kilo sack of fully ripe apples and a two-hundred-and-fifty-gram bag of sultanas. In truth, the sherry plays in counterpoint and never once overwhelms at this stage. Mouth: to be frank, it brings to mind certain old bottlings of Macallan, doubtless it’s the sherry that’s responsible for that impression. Let’s say the 18-year-old from vintages of the 1970s. So, sultanas, the faintest touch of menthol, a very light earthy and mushroomy side, orange cake, honeyed gingerbread and apricot, plus a wisp of tobacco. Finish: not very long yet perfectly classical. Honeyed tisane and very ripe apples in the aftertaste. Comments: a slightly amped-up version would be a smash hit.
SGP:551 - 88 points.

We’ll dig out an old version to serve as a sparring partner…

Glengoyne 1972/2013 (46.8%, Malts of Scotland, Angel’s Choice, bourbon barrel, cask #MoS 13009, 124 bottles)

We’re still on the hunt for what might have caused that remarkable abundance of extraordinary malts from the 1972 vintage—perhaps an alignment of planets? Or maybe a massive clearance of first-class casks just as the loch of whisky at the time had reached truly excessive levels? Colour: gold. Nose: simply s.u.b.l.i.m.e. Very delicate and wholly unexpected wisps of smoke wafting over a basket of dried or fully ripe fruits. Apricots lead the dance, followed in step by very ripe plums and papayas, then comes an exquisitely subtle beeswax. There’s much more besides, but let’s move on if you don’t mind. Mouth: a great whisky, a great vintage, and in addition a bourbon cask that has left the distillate largely unmarked. This could almost have been a fifty-year-old Grande Champagne from an excellent small house. Let’s move along, this skittle, as we say here, is twelve years old and there were only one hundred and twenty-four of them. Finish: same again, but how superb it is! Comments: so, was there an alignment of planets over the Highlands in 1972? Or perhaps a comet in 1971, likely the year of the barley harvest?
SGP:651 - 92 points.

Check the index of all Glengoyne we've tasted