Glenrothes 17-year-old (Lady of the Glen)

WHISKY REVIEWS, NEWS, HISTORY & FOLKLORE

The Glenrothes Story

This week, A Scot on Scotch’s Whisky Reviews blog is dedicated to independent bottler, Lady of the Glen. This Fife-based bottler has been one of the most consistently impressive producers of the last few years and I’m currently working my way through some rather serious samples from their output. In this review, I’m focusing on a single cask from the Glenrothes Distillery in Speyside (yesterday I reviewed a Glen Ord).

Glenrothes was planned in the 1870s by the owners of The Macallan. In 1878, however, The City of Glasgow bank collapsed, leaving many investors out of pocket and the distillery plans on hold. Undeterred, however, were Robert Dick and William Grant. They secured a loan from the United Free Presbyterian Church of Knockando and completed the distillery’s construction by 1879.

In less than a decade, the distillery had merged with Bunnahabhain on the Isle of Islay to create Highland Distillers, which went on to become Edrington. Today, Glenrothes remains under the ownership of Edrington though the single malt brand was, for a time, owned by Berry Bros & Rudd, the London-based wine and spirits merchant.

Glenrothes was a regular component in Berry’s Cutty Sark Blended Scotch and in 2010, a deal was agreed that saw Edrington retain ownership of the distillery whilst supplying Berry’s with a quantity of spirit to bottle as a single malt. That deal ended in 2017 when Edrington reclaimed possession of the Glenrothes brand.

Today, there is a range of Glenrothes malts available from Edrington but in my experience, independent versions tend to offer a more rewarding sip. This Lady of the Glen bottling was aged for 17 years in a refill hogshead and bottled at 58.9%.

*Full disclosure: the sample featured in this review was sent to me free of charge. As always, I will strive to give an honest opinion on the quality of the dram and the value for money it represents.

The Whisky

Lady of the Glen - Glenrothes sample — Lady of the Glen – Glenrothes sample

Smell: Light and fruity with apples and pears and various tinned fruits. There’s a subtle touch of oak with some cereals and dry roasted peanuts. Custard creams. Almonds and coconuts. Tangerines.

Taste: Apples and pears. Pineapple and orange zest. Marmalade on toast – toast with burnt edges. Peppery spice. A wee bit hot at times and the heat comes as a surprise because the arrival is light and fruity before it turns spicy in the middle. A wee bit oaky at the end.

Thoughts: Let me declare, first and foremost, that I’ve occasionally struggled with Glenrothes in the past. There’s something about the spirit that doesn’t appeal to me – I often find it to have a fair bit of heat, for example, which doesn’t really sit well with its fruity character. That said, when Lady of the Glen bottles a 17-year-old malt, I pay attention, and there is some good stuff on show here – there’s a nice freshness on the nose and some depth to the flavours in the arrival and despite its decent age, there’s no over-abundance of oak. Sadly, however, the overall effect still fell a bit flat. Both Berry Bros and Edrington have gravitated towards sherry maturation for their Glenrothes bottlings and I can see why. Sherry covers a multitude of sins and when you let the Glenrothes spirit breathe, it only shows that there isn’t an awful lot there to get excited about.

Price: £130. The price is understandable for a 17-year-old single cask but it didn’t do enough to convince me.