Glenrothes 21 Year Old 1997

The Whisky Broker – Glenrothes 21 Year Old 1997

This is the Glenrothes 21 year old 1997 from The Whisky Broker. This was distilled in 30/09/1997. It was firstly in an Oloroso Sherry Butt till 27/09/2017 – then an Oloroso Sherry Hogshead, and bottled in 21/02/2019. This came from cask number 15128. No colouring has been added, and the whisky has not been chill filtered.

My whisky consultant pointed me in the direction of The Whisky Broker… funnily enough they had some offers on, “buy a bag of Space Raiders and receive a bottle of the Galloway Series Glenrothes 21 year old for free!!”

So I did.

This isn’t the first independent bottling from the Glenrothes Distillery that I have bought, there have been more. The Claxton’s release seems to have almost become a benchmark…rightly or wrongly, but hey, it’s about what I love that matters..: Claxton’s Glenrothes 1997 – 19 Year Old

The Whisky

The nose had hints of milk chocolate, and a little tobacco. A fleeting minty freshness. It had hints of coffee, followed by dried fruits and a slight hint of orange. There was a little candle wax. There’s a little aroma from the pages of the old book that’s open next to me, you know? Plus a little soft brown sugar, and the teeniest pinch of nutmeg. This a cask strength whisky – 55.8% vol.

The palate delivers an oaky peppery warmth initially. The dried fruit is there, a little nuttiness in the background. There’s a hint of liquorice (think imps..) it’s got a hint of oak too. Ever so slightly drying. But for me there was just something missing… some real body perhaps?

The finish is spicy with some dried fruits remaining.

Just Thinking

It has actually been quite a while since I wrote these notes, so I feel another pour is on the cards.

We all know that whisky can be about the way we are feeling when we sit down with it. Were we in a happy place, and all felt / feels good in the world? Was it the day you bumped your car, were you feeling low? Did you have the sniffles etc. etc?

When I open new bottles, I am filled with excitement, and sometimes some apprehension too.  I think of course this is because I have had other bottlings that were utterly and completely “right up my street!!”

Well just as I arrived back earlier, I poured myself another dram of this, just to see if anything has changed against my initial thoughts… and I think those thoughts are correct, maybe it’s because I love the other bottling so much, or…?

Don’t get me wrong, this is a nice dram, and now I have opened it, it will be enjoyed.

Slàinte!