Whisky Focus - The Glenrothes Vintage Reserve Now Available In The UK

The Glenrothes Vintage Reserve now available in the UK.

Berry Bros. & Rudd Spirits has announced the UK release of The Glenrothes Vintage Reserve.

Vintage Reserve is the expression that best epitomises The Glenrothes Vintage Single Malt philosophy of bottling whisky only once it has reached the peak of its maturity. Vintage Reserve marries together a good many carefully selected Vintages from the last three decades.

The Glenrothes Vintage Reserve carries no age statement but it comprises of 10 different vintages which span the last three decades, they are 1989, 1992, 1997, 1998, 2000, 2001, 2004, 2005, 2006, and 2007. Technically if this was to carry an age statement you then it would carry the age of the 2007 Vintage which would be 7 year old but there is some mature 25 year old Glenrothes in there also which should make this a very interesting single malt.

The Glenrothes tell me that the combination of Vintages aged in a variety of casks creates a balanced whisky with mature experience and vibrant youth: the most venerable constituent brings mellow oak and dried fruits. The younger Vintages add soft, mature, sweet vanilla; the more youthful Vintages add exuberance and lemon citrus notes.

Malt Master, Gordon Motion hand-selected the casks to create the Vintage Reserve, using character and flavour as his guide, not a pre-determined age. Gordon Motion’s flavour notes appear on the front label: "Mellow, soft fruits, citrus and honey."

Ronnie Cox, The Glenrothes Brand Heritage Director, states: "This is our most complex Reserve to date. Unlike other malts that bottle by age, we choose whiskies that represent the best of a particular year and marry them together when they are ready. That is in contrast to many distillers who bottle simply based on the age of a whisky. The emphasis is on the quality, taste and flavour of the whisky – not the age."

Bottled at 40% ABV The Glenrothes Vintage Reserve was initially launch in Taiwan in November 2014 and is now available here in the UK and will be available from selected specialist whisky shops such as The Whisky Exchange with an RRP of £39.99
 

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