Forever blowing bubbles with Glen Garioch?

Glen Garioch continues to be a bit of a blind spot for me. Like its sister distilleries Bowmore and Auchentoshan, the distillery suffered under a weird distilling regime in (predominantly) the eighties, causing a very soapy, lavender-like character in these malts. Maybe it is the Pavlov reaction to these experiences that make it hard for me to get back into Glen Garioch. Auchentoshan and Bowmore seemed to have shook off these dark days much easier. Today we dive into a single cask bottled by Dram Charaidean for Cask2share.

Glen Garioch 12 years old, bottled at 56 % abv by Dram Charaidean for Cask2share
Makeup: Taken from a refill bourbon barrel with cask number 890. The vintage is 2011.

General impressions: Light gold in appearance. The smell from the glass underlines the fact Glen Garioch produces a very fragrant spirit. The association with the famous (rather infamous) soapy era of GG is not to be missed. Lots of strong smelling flowers, washing liquid, lavender, and bathing foam (see picture). Does this sound like a nightmare yet? Funnily enough these smells are not as off-putting as from the dreaded vintages. You get the impression the cask was dead wood so this is truly untainted GG spirit left alone for 12 years.

I am afraid there is a reason that I almost never drink or sample Glen Garioch. I cannot seem to shake this really bubbly, soapy taste that it brings to the table. To look at the bright side, Dram Charaidean is really brave to bottle such a single malt that does everything in abundance. Smell, taste and finish are really in your face with lots of gusto. It just really is not my preferred style. Let me conclude that water does improve the drinking experience.

Conclusion: Very funny to taste. Note to self: check back with Glen Garioch in ten years.

Score: 75 points

Disclaimer: sample kindly shared with me by a whisky friend.

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