Glenfiddich Winter Storm 21 Year

Our last night in Costa Rica, and I treated myself to this during a nice last night vacation dinner. After three locations in CR ( mountains and valleys of Monteverde, volcano and rainforests of Arenal, and sheer luxury of the Guanacaste coast), I thought this was an apt way to part. Honestly, I was surprised to see this on the hotel shelf...not readily available in the US, never mind here in Costa Rica. At about $30/pour...expensive. But unique. I’m generally not a Fiddich fan, but this was interesting. It’s like walking into an Asian tropical fruit section. Aromas of lychees, jackfruit, kiwi. Palette is more of the same. Definitely worth trying...especially if you enjoy higher quality Irish whiskey (think Bushmill 21, Redbreast 21). You’ll get a similar tropical fruit basket, but with an Asian bent.

I can understand some of the negative comments about this whisky. It’s expensive, hard to find, and very different from just about everything else out there. I rounded up to give it a 4⭐️. The tasting not about lychee is right on. For me, in fact, I felt like I was taking a walk through the fruit section of an Asian market. Jackfruit, star fruit, and others all made an appearance to accompany the lychee. Worth trying.

The nose is VERY complex, with pear, honey, vanilla notes coming forward. you notice the sweetness from the ice wine barrels immediately, but then malt and spicy elements arrive to produce a warm, lingering finish with a buttery quality. A different, interesting and delicious addition.

Nose...fresh green apple, sweet and tart. The wine influence shows here. There is something else on the nose it’s hard to describe, until you taste it. Burnt rubber. Awful, hardly palatable burnt rubber. In my opinion this is not a good Scotch. On the palate it’s just not pleasant at all and the finish is, thankfully, extremely short. The only positive is that the experience is over quickly. 1/5. I would recommend Glenmorangie 18, Old Pulteney 21 or even the Hibiki Harmony over this if you want a fruity experience.