Glenfarclas '105'

Glenfarclas is a fantastic distillery in my books. Still family-owned, it churns out whisky of dependable, excellent quality, and their '105' bottling is no exception. Running a whopping 60% alcohol and bottled without chill filtration, this is gigantic whisky and that only makes it all the more appealing to me.

Immediately upon nosing a glass of this stuff you're hit by how powerful it is. Dark, almost-burnt caramel,intense dark woody spices (cinnamon, clove, maybe a touch of star anise?), milk chocolate, raisins, dates, black cherries, sherry tannins, and a little hint of pear in the back. The nose is buttery-rich, intense, and decadent. It's a touch hot without water but not nearly as much so as you might expect from a 120-proof drink.

On the palate, there's a viscous, rich, oily quality to this stuff that I absolutely love, and it arrives with a bang. Dark caramel, spice, ginger, dried red fruits, chocolate, faint touches of smoke, barley sugars, and a really nice toasty/biscuity quality all interweave nicely, leading to a long, fairly dry finish with warm spices, oak, toasted nuts, and tannins. Remarkably little alcohol burn going down, which speaks volumes as to the quality of the whisky in my opinion.

Among the 'sherry monster' whiskies, this is a real standout. Keeping flavors as massive as the ones in this whisky in balance can't be an easy task, but Glenfarclas 105 is easily up to the task- it's sinfully rich, complex, and delicious.

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