Glenfiddich 125th Anniversary bottled 2012

Here we have something quite unique, only available in travel retail: a peated Glenfiddich! To celebrate the distillery's 125th anniversary, Brian Kinsman (only the sixth malt master in all that time) recreated an old style of peated Speyside whisky, as it would have been back in the day. Well…not really. Back then, it would have been cask strength, and likely clear and unaged (though this bottle carries no age statement). But it's close (I guess). The packaging is a bit much: metal tin, coppery stopper, booklet and a "Certificate of Authenticity" scroll. I first cracked this open for my family on Christmas Day 2013, so the bottle (from 2012) has been open for a couple of months.

The colour is gold with a slight coppery tinge. On the nose, soft heathery peat (quite a difference from Islay peat!), roasted cashews, charred wood and creme brûlée. The peat combined with that classic apple/pear/raspberry fruity note is intoxicating. Nicely balanced. Water doesn't change things up much.

On the palate we have vanilla, marmalade and red apples up front, soft peat and toasted oak in the back. Herbaceous. Mouth-watering. Not as balanced as the nose, but fascinating - both peaty and very smooth, though a little metallic. Like with the nose, not much change with water.

The medium-length finish shows camphor, cigar ash, cinnamon and more caramel. This feels like a very young whisky (even the 12 seems to have more body) but it is quite unique and very interesting. But it's not fully successful - it doesn't seem to commit in any particular direction. Tasting this with the 12 and 18 is fantastic - the commonalities carry though, but they all taste quite different.

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