Glenfarclas Family Cask Series

In general, I am a big fan of Glenfarclas and find that the distillery's bottles are relatively bargain-priced for their age. It's hard to make an argument that $400 for a bottle is a bargain or reasonable, but compared to other distilleries, Glenfarclas is reasonable for the same age. Even non-OB 40 year old Macallans are well over $1,000. 40 year Glenfarclas OB? $400-450.

As for the quality, they're generally very good. There are many different Family Cask vintage bottlings, and the quality does vary as do the flavor profiles. Some are younger, some are older, you name it. They're not inexpensive. I've had some samples - young and old - for which I did not care, and certainly would not spend the money for more or a bottle. I've had samples of others that left me clamoring for a bottle anywhere, or just another hit. The standard expressions (21, 25, 30, and 40) are more consistent (as one would expect of standard expressions compared to single cask releases) and are very good, and also reasonably priced for their ages. If you're thinking of getting a particular Family Cask, I'd advise you to check Whiskybase to see what people thought. Even if the prices are relatively reasonable, they're nothing at which to scoff, and it's worth finding out a bit more about the release that you're considering.

Thanks numen. I really like Glenfarclas. I am interested in the 1974 vintage.

@StevieC, I don't blame you! I keep debating getting another bottle of the stuff. It's just great. It's not part of their Family Cask series, but one of their periodic vintage releases that's made up of a few casks from the given year. I think that this one was made of three casks (sherry, refill, bourbon), and it works wonderfully well.

In my opinion Glenfarclas 1966 and 1973 Family Cask are great dram!... but I think that their prices are intractable. I recommend to taste these dram in a tasting session.

Thank you gentleman. I wish to sample some of these whiskies, but where I live, it is next to impossible to get your hands on samples.

@StevieC, I've had luck so far with Master of Malt's Drink by the Dram program. They're not always inexpensive, but they do have a '55, '59, '74, '91, '75, '53, '56, '69, '65, '80, '87, '60, and '71 available by the dram.

masterofmalt.com/search/glenfarclas/…

That would be nice, however, I live in a government controlled province.

Anyone ever tried the Glenfarclas Family Cask 2001? Clearly it's a lot younger than the rest of the range, but I was wondering if it's worth a try.

@broadwayblue Any one year may have more than one cask available, and they can taste different from each other. That said, I did try a 2001 at Astor in New York. I liked it so much that I bought a bottle, which I have yet to open. I don't remember too much about the flavor, but I do remember that it was delicious, and very drinkable neat, although the bottle in Astor was almost empty, so oxidation may have had a helping hand.

The '66 seems to be history at this point. I am intrigued by the family cask series but they are quite expensive, even the 16 year bottlings. To me, this sort of exotic stuff is best tried at Glenfarclas direct, and then purchased based upon one's personal affinities. In America, we can't buy samples, so alas, the whole thing is beyond most of our abilities to enjoy. I would definitely invest in a few bottles if I ever go to England or Scotland and either hit the Glenfarclas tour or order up some samples via post.

I saw a bottle of 2001 at Astor. It intrigues me. The bottling date was not revealed that I could see. I would guess that it's a 13, or perhaps a 12 year.

Love the Glenfarclas Family Casks! Had the 81 release 7 and the 1985 while in Scotland and really enjoyed both. Grabbed the 81 as it's my birth year and if possible one should always have a 'Farclas Family Cask from your birth year.

That being said some of them can be quite pricey. It's not so bad over here in Australia where it's not unusual to see top of the line whiskies at $200 and up up up! Folks in the states really do have it pretty good when it comes to the price point on whiskies. Makes me very jealous of you guys :D