Glenkinchie Distillers Edition

Bottle killed 4/2/19 Glenkinchie Distiller’s Edition OB NAS 43% ABV Distilled 2004 Bottled 2016 Finished in Amontillado Casks Price: 46 USD Glenkinchie, and most lowland single malts, want to be dry, grassy, and earthy. So, if I had to pick a sherry cask to finish the rather uninteresting, low-key core 12 year old Glenkinchie, amontillado makes sense. Amontillado is an earthy, dry, light sherry. But why do you have to pick a sherry cask? Why can’t this distiller’s edition be matured 12 years in bourbon, and then “finished” for an additional 4 years in the same bourbon cask? And bottled at 46%. At its best, Glenkinchie DE is a maltier Highland Park on the nose. A nice burst of bright fruits on a base of honey, hay, and cereal, with a touch of heathery smoke on the end. But the more you get to know this whisky, the more the sherry feels unwelcomed. Towards the end of the palate, and on the finish, this is a malt that wants to be rough, rugged, and grassy. The fruits from the sherry influence is like forcing a tomboy to be a ballerina. What Glenkinchie needs is more age and more ABV. Diageo’s special releases (20 year in 2010, and 24 year in 2016) are fantastic, but expensive, examples of what a beast this distillery can be. I am reasonably satisfied with this bottle for the marked-down price that I found it at. It was literally $1 more than the standard Glenkinchie at the same store. But this is one dram I don’t need to try again. Rating (price not factored): 80 / 100 Purchase satisfaction (price factored): 2.5 / 5

Enjoyed this. Nice balanced flavor.