Review: Glen Garioch 2011 12 Year Old Oloroso Finish Berry Brothers Sense of Place ‘Glens & Valleys’

Is This Glen Garioch Similar To The Regular Glen Garioch Bottles?

A little, yes. You can definitely spot the classic Glen Garioch style in this single cask expression. But it has some lighter elements provided by the Oloroso sherry, which in itself in itself is a little unusual. Glen Garioch can be a very heavy and intense liquid, but it can also have some incredibly delicate elements to it, this is clearly the latter. Having Oloroso provide these beautiful summer notes, in comparison to those classic Christmas, chocolate, or raisin notes is the definition of how important and powerful a sherry cask finish can actually be. It’s just giving you a touch of lighter sherry flavours, whilst still allowing this house style of spirit to pull through in this bottling.

Should You Buy This Glen Garioch?

This Berry Brothers bottling isn’t the cheapest 12 year old single cask that you’ll come across, but the score is very impressive, and the liquid genuinely sounds interesting – especially if you’re familiar with the classic Glen Garioch style. However, there are some standout options in the regular lineup that you should probably try first, mainly the Glen Garioch 12 year old, which in terms of value for money, is one of the best bottles you can currently buy on the market. It isn’t a natural color, but it stands up in every other category of being brilliant. However, if you’re looking for something unique, like all single barrels at their core, this is something that should spike your attention.

Did You Know…

Prior to 1996, Glen Garioch used to have a little whiff of peat running through. They were closed between 1996 and 1997, but if you can pick up anything from 1995 or before, you’ll pick up those little elements of peat smoke. This used to add an even bigger range of depth to the whisky.