Glen Grant 26 Year Old 1974 Scott's Selection

Glen Grant from 1974, already 14 years in the bottle. This is no official release, but from the famous bottler Scott’s Selection. It was bottled at cask strength. I got the sample at the most recent whisky festival in Ghent.

The nose is sweet, but mostly offers earth. Ferns. Fallen leaves. Something of an autumn dram. Some white fruit and honey easily shine through, though. In the background I get some marzipan. And then something weird, almost chemical. In fact, it becomes a bit like fabric softener. Strange, but luckily all the way in the back, unobtrusive.

On the palate it is very round and creamy, but very soapy now, which is a letdown. A lot of citrus, even some lemongrass. The oak cask has put its foot down, through which the whisky loses some of its freshness and gets a mildly bitter and drying touch.

In the long, spicy finish it goes downhill. Bitter and soapy. What a pity.

A strange Glen Grant, something of the odd one out. Around 400 EUR if you can still find it, which is ridiculous in this case.

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