Glen Grant 1988 30yo (A.D. Rattray)

Merry Christmas! Today’s scotch is the final in the Scotch Whisky Advent Calendar. It is a 30 year old Glen Grant, distilled in 1988, aged in a sherry butt and bottled in 2008 at cask strength (55.1%) by A.D. Rattray.

So, then. That being the last whisky in the advent calendar, we can look back and see how it went. My strongest impression is that this calendar was overwhelmingly not worth the money. The majority of the whiskies in here were average, sub-teenager bourbon cask Speysides. Yes, here and there there were some special things, but the price paid did not at all justify the contents.

I am also jarred by the calendar producer’s refusal to respond to emails about or even acknowledge the mix up between days 5 and 6. And for the amount of money we are paying, Jonathan at Secret Spirits seemed to take masochistic pleasure in his blog at seeing people’s disappointment opening day after day of custard-bomb bourbon-cask Speyside that they paid large sum of money for. It left such a bad taste in my mouth that I will actively be avoiding anything Secret Spirits is involved in in the future.

My tip for next year: get someone you trust to put together a calendar for you: be it from Fine Drams, Master of Malt or The Whisky Exchange, there are options out there. You will be far more satisfied, and you will pay far less money.

1. Macduff 2003 14yo (Single Cask Nation)
2. Wemyss Wooden Chest
3. Lost Distillery Company Auchnagie Classic
4. Glen Moray 2008 9yo #5764 (Secret Spirits)
5. Craigellachie 12yo 2006 Cask Strength (Secret Spirits)
6. Exclusive Malts Islay Sherry Cask (Laphroaig)
7. Adelphi Breath of Speyside 2006 (11yo)
8. Balmenach 2004 13yo (Douglas Laing Old Malt Cask)
9. Glen Moray 2007 10yo (A.D. Rattray)
10. Royal Brackla 2006 11yo (Secret Spirits)
11. Wemyss Delicious Burst
12. Lost Distillery Company Stratheden Classic
13. Auchinderom - Peated Glenglassaugh (Malt Whisky Company)
14. Knockdhu 2009 9yo (A.D. Rattray)
15. Caol Ila 2009 9yo (Secret Spirits)
16. Wemyss Nectar Grove
17. Glentauchers 2008 10yo (Secret Spirits)
18. Glenallachie 2009 9yo (Secret Spirits)
19. Williamson (Laphroaig) 2005 13yo (A.D. Rattray)
20. Stones of Stenness Orkney Aged 18yo (Single Cask Nation)
21. Inchgower 1995 21yo (Hunter Laing Old Malt Cask)
22. Towiemore Archivist (Lost Distillery Company)
23. North British 1988 30yo (A.D. Rattray)
24. Inchmurrin 1996 21yo (Secret Spirits)
25. Glen Grant 1988 30yo (A.D. Rattray)

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Distiller: Glen Grant
Bottler: A.D. Rattray
Distilled: 1988
Bottled: 2018
ABV: 55.1%
Age: 30yo
Cask type: Sherry Butt
Source: The Scotch Whisky Advent Calendar 5th Edition (by Secret Spirits)
Setting: Blind

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Nose: Dusty garage shelf, dirty ashy peat, some mild sherry notes, burnt blue cheese, Norwegian gamalost cheese.
Palate: Hot and sweet, dirty peat hits first in a stinging wave over the tongue, after which it mellows through a phase of dusty tropical fruit.
Finish: Sits for a medium length, and fades from those tropical fruit notes into funky coconut, vanilla, white wine and brazil nuts.
Overall: This is a whisky I could dissect for days. So much funk going on here, in concert with a wonderfully dirty peat and sherry character that assaults your palate and retreats to leave beautiful tropical fruit flavours. Very, very good stuff.
Rank: 8