
May 25, 2026

An incredible Glendronach duo, 77 years in total

A slightly catchier headline than usual perhaps, but trust me, the occasion more than warrants it, as we’re about to taste the new marvel released to celebrate the distillery’s 200th anniversary, preceded by an aperitif that’s no slouch either. We’re expecting some sumptuous old-school sherry bombs, but let’s see if they live up to the promise…

Glendronach Distillery in a not too
distant past (Glendronach)

Glendronach 21 yo ‘2025 Edition’ (48%, OB, sherry cask matured, +/-2025)

Glendronach 21 yo ‘2025 Edition’ (48%, OB, sherry cask matured)
Some PX and some oloroso in this recent baby, which signed the return of the 21 yo last year after several years of absence for the famous ‘Parliament’. The last Parliament we had tasted dated from around 2018. They seem to have dropped the name, though given the state of democracies around the world, it’s true that the term can now seem, sadly, a little outdated. Colour: amber, so not that dark. Nose: this is very much a chocolate-led sherry profile, with raisins, fruitcake, dried apricots, sherry cream, malmsey Madeira, alongside a few very pleasant touches of coffee fudge. In other words, quite a gourmand nose, if indeed a nose can be gourmand. Also a few notes of hazelnut liqueur and, if I dared, I’d add a few drops of Bailey’s. Mouth: livelier, it seems to me, than the older Parliaments, less jammy and rich, though still packed with dried figs, orange zests and a return of old malmsey. Touches of dark chocolate and coffee bring extra balance, rather drier in style. Finish: fairly long, with lovely black pepper, then marmalade and orange zests. Seville oranges in the aftertaste. Comments: it remains opulent, though more balanced than I had expected. The sherry still plays a central role but anyway, this is really very good in my view, rather in the vein of the 199X single casks from a few years back.
SGP:651 - 88 points.

Glendronach 56 yo 1968/2025 ‘Bicentennial’ (44.9%, OB for Glendronach’s Bicentenary, sherry, 200 bottles, 2026)

I suppose there’s no need to stress quite how rare such an age is in the grand scheme of things, well, apart from at G&M perhaps, and maybe even more so at Glendronach. We’re dealing here with three oloroso casks from 1968, finished in PX after around forty years in oloroso, then married in 2014 before being decanted in August 2025. I should add that we had rather adored the fairly monstrous official 1968 bottled in 1993 at 25 years of age. That one was extremely dry in style, which may explain the PX finishing here, perhaps intended to restore a little roundness. Colour: pale mahogany. Nose: imagine fir buds mingled with blackberry jelly and raspberry ganache, alongside very old, very dark pu-ehr tea, morels and a few strips of lightly smoked Spanish ham dried in the oven. Would make splendid little verrines, wouldn’t it? It also brings to mind the morel cappuccino at Maison Ferber in Niedermorschwihr. Apologies if this is making you peckish. Mouth: stylistically we’re not diametrically opposed to the 21 yo, but here there’s a little cedarwood, even pencil shavings to begin with, before the whole thing unfurls towards chocolate, very black coffee (no American) and thin mints from a grand chocolatier. There’s also a faint old red Burgundy side to it, I’ll let you choose your favourite cru. I’d probably say Latricières. The strength is perfect and there’s actually not a microgram of sweetness brought by the PX. Rarely encountered a PX this discreet. Finish: lovely length, with bitter oranges arriving, cassis, from Burgundy of course, and a touch of freshly ground pepper. Comments: we do find again the style of the great Glendronachs from 1971 and 1972. In short, this is all very rock and roll. The decanter’s elegant too, which certainly doesn’t spoil anything.
SGP:461 - 92 points.

There’s also a 35-year-old edition for French wine and spirits merchants, but it doesn’t appear to have been officially released yet, so we’ll be tasting that one later.

Check the index of all Glendronach we've tasted