Whisky of 2019

Glenfarclas 105

This affordable and available whisky had a record of 30 wins and 0 losses in 2019...

Nose - A sherry bomb.  Dried fruits.  Over ripe peaches, bananas, raisins.  Sangria, butterscotch, honey.  

Palate - The sweetness diminishes and baking spices, herbs and bitter flavors come to the forefront.  Adding some water brings out black pepper.  The jarring difference of the nose and palate also put me off at first, again because the palate wasn't what I was expecting after the nose.

Finish - A wave of heat from the 60% ABV comes back only to quickly fade away leaving the herbal palate behind.

Summary - I've never had Christmas Cake but this is the whisky I brought out on Christmas to go along with gingerbread and other tasty treats... and kept it out that night to pair with a cigar around an outdoor fire.  Smooth for 60% but adding a little water doesn't hurt.

The Glenfarclas 105 did not impress me when I first tried it in 2018.  I don't know when it was me getting used to the whisky or the whisky changing a bit after the bottle was opened.  Perhaps it was simply that I was projecting my expectations from other Glenfarclas expressions and it wasn't what I was expecting.  Whatever the reason, I love it now and the numbers show its climb up my rankings.  Coming into 2019 it was about as average as you can get with a 6 -7 record and a Colley score of 53 (on a 0-100 scale).  It was only ranked 144 out of 300.  But it went undefeated this year with a record of 30-0, highlighted by winning my March Madness tournament and beating my current #1 Port Charlotte CC:01 in the final.  By the end of 2019 it jumped all the way to a score of 86 and was ranked #23 of 381.  And I of course I bought a spare bottle tucked away.

Check out my favorite Distilleries of 2019, Brands of 2019, and Owners of 2019 as well!  The awards process is summarized here: 2019 Awards