The GlenDronach sherried Highland Single Malt Scotch Whisky, produced by one of Scotland’s oldest distilleries renowned for its mastery of sherry cask maturation, and revered by connoisseurs around the globe, is now also available to the whisky connoisseur in South Africa.
“What makes The GlenDronach unique is our sherry style leveraging of Pedro Ximenez casks”, said Stewart Buchanan, The GlenDronach Global Brand Ambassador. “The GlenDronach has the highest percentage of Pedro Ximenez in the industry delivering the most balanced, robust character, and full bodied sherried taste profile like no other whisky.”
The GlenDronach 12 Year Old, a double award winner, is the flagship expression in the range. “Every single drop has been in a sherry cask, a combination of both Pedro Ximenez and Oloroso. It is the expression which most represents the perfect balance of distillery character and maturation”, said Rachel Barrie, Master Blender for The GlenDronach. “You can discern the character of the spirit, the fruitiness, orange, some cherries, and at the same time, it’s in balance with the Pedro Ximenez and Oloroso. The Pedro Ximenez gives sweetness and cocoa, almost like dark chocolate, cherries and spice, and Oloroso gives hazelnut, creamy, rounded, caramelised sweetness. Together you get that perfect balance, you get finesse and elegance, and at the same time it is full-bodied and robust in character, with a really long finish.”
Also available are the famous award-winning GlenDronach 18 Year Old Allardice, named after the distillery founder, and matured in the finest Spanish Oloroso sherry casks – a sublime richly sherried malt that is truly unforgettable; and the award-winning Glendronach 21 Year Old Parliament, named after the parliament of rooks nesting in the trees overlooking the distillery for nearly 200 years, created by combining the finest sherry casks – a sublime sherried single malt not to be missed.
“Within the range of Spanish oak sherry casks available, The GlenDronach focuses on the marriage of fruity and nutty Oloroso Sherry casks and intensely, rich Pedro Ximenez casks. Alongside the flavour, Oloroso casks also give The GlenDronach its signature depth in colour. Pedro Ximenez casks on the other hand, provide the signature richness and depth in flavour of The GlenDronach,” said Buchanan.
The GlenDronach Distillery was founded by James Allardice in 1826. To this day the distillery continues his legacy, spanning nearly two centuries, of marrying Highland spirit to Spanish oak.
Nestled in a small valley and surrounded by vast Highland landscapes, The GlenDronach’s well kept secrets have been guarded for nearly two hundred years by a parliament of rooks, a small group of blackbirds that try to nest in the warehouses. The distillery folk believe that as long as the rooks remain, it will be “good for the whisky”.
The multiple award winning expressions of The GlenDronach get their unique flavour profiles from the distillery’s saxophone-shaped stills, created to capture top notes of berries and Seville oranges as well as base notes of chocolate, leather and tobacco. That’s how it all starts, but how it ends up is as a rich, full bodied and elegant whisky with a velvety texture, intriguing complexity, finesse, grace and elegance, with a richly satisfying finish.
The GlenDronach is a whisky created according to the finest Highland traditions and crafted by a masterful use of sherry casks for almost two centuries. James Allardice could never have imagined how great his whisky would one day become.
