Glenglassaugh’s Three Oldest Whiskies Versus The Award Profitable Sandend

Rachel Barrie has been creating whisky for 30 years and as Brown Foreman’s grasp whisky blender she is likely one of the most outstanding figures within the whisky trade. I used to be lucky sufficient to fulfill along with her to debate the trio of first releases from The Glenglassaugh Serpentine Coastal Cask Assortment and the award profitable Sandend.

The three oldest whiskies from Glenglassaugh are aged 48, 49 and 51 years previous. Fantastically introduced in driftwood packing containers with capsules crafted from their namesake marble, they’re stunning whiskies and certain to turn into wanted collectors’ objects as Brown Forman continues to advertise its single malt manufacturers on the world stage. For me nevertheless, it’s the creation of Sandend’s accessible luxurious the place Barrie’s mastery of the market actually shines.

Grasp Blender At Brown Forman

The week earlier than I met her Barrie had been in Singapore for the worldwide launch of Glenglassaugh’s three oldest whiskies. These whiskies are the newest jewelles within the crown of her seven years at Brown Foreman, the place she manages Glenglassaugh, Benriach and newly rebranded The Glendronach.

To an informal shopper it might seem like taking over a trio of established distilleries with warehouses of maturing inventory would make life simple. Within the aggressive world of single malt whisky it isn’t sufficient to imagine that creating good whisky will make you profitable. A fast look over Barrie’s LinkedIn profile exhibits she’s touring continuously and selling each herself and her whiskies extensively.

The Serpentine Coastal Assortment

Barrie considers herself each guardian and sculptor of the whiskies she manages. “It’s being a guardian, partly, of the choices made up to now, however then I can even rerack these casks as we speak; I take small samples of the casks—as small as attainable, after all, because it’s very invaluable—and determine is it prepared? or is that this just a little bit an excessive amount of of that? And would it not be higher in one other kind of cask? And in order that’s the affect that I’ve, it’s extra like a sculptor of the trail.”

The three whiskies within the Serpentine Coastal Cask Assortment are unimaginable. I used to be lucky to strive every of the expressions that Barrie and her workforce have crafted. My private favourite was the 48 yr previous, which shocked me as it’s the one completed in Aleatico Crimson Wine Barrique, and usually I’d say I want a bourbon end. That was the 49 yr previous, bottled at a barely decrease cask power of 42.1%. I do know quite a bit about casks however Barrie mentioned the nuances of wooden with a nonchalance born of 30 years within the trade.

“Bourbon barrels permit the cask to breathe extra, as a result of American oak makes thinner staves, and we lose extra to the angels.” The commerce is the flavour profile these staves can develop inside the scotch, high notes of mint, complimenting Glenglassaugh’s enviable tropical flavors.

The 51 yr previous has been handled to ending in an Oloroso Puncheon and I get an exquisite hit of summer time strawberries in consequence. As I searched my palette for tactics to explain what I used to be tasting, I used to be struck with a well-known discord that comes after I actually take into consideration tasting notes, and remind myself to additionally savor the expertise.

An Apart On Mark Littler And Tasting Notes

You’ll discover in the event you learn, watch or eat any of my content material, that I are likely to steer away from tasting notes. That’s as a result of tasting whisky isn’t my experience.

Lengthy earlier than I found the world of whisky my background was in nice artwork. Towards that backdrop I’ve all the time been barely perplexed by the whisky world’s must share hyper-detailed tasting notes.

I do know most whisky drinkers appear to disagree, however for me, having fun with a whisky is private and inherently subjective. Attempting to research why I’m having fun with a whisky is as alien as making an attempt to precisely describe the colour of Christ’s gown on Carravaggio’s ‘The Calling of Saint Matthew’; it simply doesn’t matter in the event you see it as sienna or garnet, what resonates is the expertise created by the entire.

This was true of the three oldest Glenglassaugh; quite than being a mix of single tastes and flavors, the expertise was greater than the sum of its elements. This incapacity to successfully put what I’m tasting into phrases that make sense to anybody else is why I depart the tasting notes to the consultants!

Recollections Of The Coast

The Serpentine Coastal Cask Assortment is clearly a premium product. The Glenglassaugh’s stunning new bottle fashion has been taken to a distinct stage with display printing and no less than an inch of crystal glass including a snug weightiness to the decanter. Completed with a stopper constructed from Serpentine marble and encased in a naturally coloured field constructed from driftwood that additionally echoes the ripples of sand and lightweight by the ocean that has impressed the glass design.

It’s arguably as engineered because the Macallan Horizon, however not like the Horizon, the Serpentine assortment is all about establishing precisely who Glenglassaugh are. Each stunning facet of it drills house their hyper marketed “coastal malt” message, little doubt impressed by the success and recognition of some Islay distilleries’ distinctive coastal flavors. And Glenglassaugh whisky is coastal; there are salted notes, candy caramel and tropical flavors that Barrie says reminds her of pineapple floats on the seashore. However it’s also a theme crafted for premiumisation.

Premiumisation is the way in which of the trade, and Barrie doesn’t shrink back from it. “Everybody loves luxurious; individuals pays just a little bit additional for one thing which means one thing to them, that they join with.”

However the purpose with Glenglassaugh seems to be a balanced strategy. “The route of journey is clearly premiumisation. In case you have a look at the market as an entire, volumes are down, however the worth goes up,” Barrie defined, alluding to the 2024 figures from the Scotch Whisky Affiliation on international export volumes and values. “Luxurious is all the time going to be there and some individuals will aspire to it, however at Glenglassaugh there’s all the time going to be one thing within the model that could be a little bit extra accessible. It’s nonetheless one thing that’s going to be nurtured and it represents a form of accessible luxurious.”

Accessible, Award Profitable Single Malt

That is the place Sandend sits within the Glenglassaugh portfolio; accessible luxurious. Having tried the older whiskies we get speaking about Barrie’s different whiskies, and Sandend comes up due to its awards. I admitted that I hadn’t tried it and Barrie instantly rectified the state of affairs by producing a bottle.

Having sampled the older age statements already I can style the distinction between them and Sandend. Sandend is a small marvel for what it has achieved for its worth level, however it additionally shines a highlight on the complexity born of a era quietly maturing in wooden. It additionally showcases the cautious balancing act Barrie has completed along with her alternative of ending casks. I additionally assume that Sandend is unimaginable for what it represents; a no age assertion whisky that’s accessibly priced and but beat many costlier whiskies to win the Whisky Advocate 2023 Whisky Of The Year.

Sure, distilleries and types want older age assertion premium single malts, however in addition they want accessible and nice tasting whisky to win the hearts and palettes of the individuals who help the majority of the market. 

In Sandend we get to see absolutely what Barrie is able to creating when she isn’t beholden to age statements. It’s one thing she has been engaged on for her seven years at Brown Forman, and that’s between nurturing Develop, the Brown Forman initiative for ladies within the trade and likewise constructing the whiskies for her different distilleries beneath administration: Benriach and Glendronach. And sure, the 48 yr previous was up there with the perfect whisky I’ve ever tasted, however I do know which one I’ve gone out and purchased… and that is the purpose of accessible luxurious.

This text is tailored from one initially written for Forbes.com