Tasted #715: Glenfarclas 1st Fill Sherry Hogshead "Selected by & Bottled for Whisky & Wisdom Edition 3"

Very nearly 10 years ago, I wrote about Andrew "AD" Derbidge's Glenfarclas 2007 9yo, bottled for his excellent blog Whisky and Wisdom (Andrew also being of SMWS Australia fame). At the time I commented that "having shared many a dram with AD over the years (and tried many of his SMWS picks), I knew he had an excellent palate, so had no hesitation buying this before sampling it." It was a brilliant whisky, and was gone far too quickly, shared amongst good friends in Hong Kong.

Andrew followed up with another Glenfarclas in 2018 (Edition 2, a 10yo distilled in 2008), but then went a bit quiet on the bottling front...until recently.

Yes Glenfarclas fans - AD has done it again, this time picking a 2016 distilled 10yo (from a 1st Fill European Oak Oloroso Sherry Hogshead, like Edition 2) for Edition 3, and just like Editions 1 and 2, I bought it untasted, trusting the man's palate (if you've been to an SMWS tasting in Australia any time in the last twenty years, there's a good chance you've met Andrew and know what I'm talking about).

Having realised (after purchase) that the distillation date has some personal significance, I decided to keep the bottle aside for a special occasion, but AD was kind enough to provide a sample so I could still taste it now.

Glenfarclas 1st Fill Sherry Hogshead "Selected by & Bottled for Whisky & Wisdom Edition 3" (59.1% ABV, Single Malt, 10yo, Cask #281, Speyside, Scotland, 1 of 318 bottles, $269AUD)

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Colour: Deep, rich copper.

Nose: Clean but expressive, savoury sherry with all the hallmarks you'd expect, underpinned by a malty, round quality that gives it real depth. Vanilla pudding, Brazil nuts, & crème brûlée. Big, clean, proper old school sherry.

Palate: Super rich and creamy, and very clean. Ginger spice mixes with walnuts, oak and herbal notes, with some citrus zest sitting underneath — though for me it's the ginger spice that leads, with dried fruit, sultanas, and rich vanilla coming in to perform backup vocals.

Finish: Ginger spice into a long, warming old school oak note.

Rating (on my very non-scientific scale): 92/100 (Martin). A cracking release, and one that shows exactly why Andrew's Glenfarclas picks keep finding an audience — clean, rich, old school and unmistakably sherried, without being over done. Power and balance - spot on (we'd expect nothing less).


Andrew's Glenfarclas 1st Fill Sherry Hogshead "Selected by & Bottled for Whisky & Wisdom Edition 3" is available now from his blog for $269AUD. Thanks Andrew for the sample (and can't wait to crack open my own bottle).


Cheers,

Martin.