Glenfiddich 1974 / 36 Year Old / Rare Collection

Nose: Fresh, especially considering its age. Pears, pear drops, rhubarb and custard boiled sweets, gummi chews and a touch of spearmint. Freshly cut old wood, well worn leather jackets, some floral hints and buttery brioche.

Palate: Icing sugar sweetness up front, fading through medium-sweet oranges to Mr Sheen polished tables and tropical fruit sweets.

Finish: Sweet mint, tingly wood spice and freshly cut boards.

Comments: Not as heavy and old as I'd expect, although definitely rounded by its time in oak. Fresh and fruity with some nice old wood, maybe a little much for me as it spills over into the finish.

Nose: Quite light considering the age; elegant and subtle, yet with real character. We’re back in the bakery, with homemade pastry, cocoa powder and apple pie notes. Also a seasoned oak aroma, and hot chocolate and dried leaves alongside a fresher grassiness becoming herbaceous. Develops a damson jelly & sponge cake aroma with time.

Palate: Mediumweight, but well-flavoured. A nuttiness that wasn’t really there on the nose, with chocolate and a wave of polished oak. The leafy notes are there too.

Finish: Honeyed, drying and quite spicy as the oak takes over.

Comments: Not a full-on dram, but all the better for it. Elegant and fully mature, on a knife edge in places, but just retains its balance.

Nose: The nose of the 2011 Glenfiddich Vintage Reserve is rich and oaky with vibrant vanilla sweetness and an intriguing hint of polished leather and liquorice. With the addition of a little water there is a burst of fresh fruit and spice – orange marmalade, ripe berries, cinnamon, nutmeg and caramelised pear.

Taste: The taste of the 2011 Glenfiddich Vintage Reserve is initially very sweet with a vanilla toffee character. The oak tannin develops with time giving a pleasing, oily texture and a slightly drier flavour. With water, it becomes velvety soft and mellow with beautiful layers of fruit, spice, oak and the merest hint of smoke.

Finish: The finish of the 2011 Glenfiddich Vintage Reserve is very long lasting with lingering oak.