It wouldn’t make sense as a direct head-to-head, but let’s have a medium-aged Glen Grant 1993 after yesterday’s excellent 38 year-old. It’s part of the latest releases by A.D. Rattray and bottled from a bourbon cask.
Glen Grant 17 yo 1993 (55,6%, A.D. Rattray 2011, bourbon cask #121916, 292 btl.)
Nose: pear, slightly artificial orange, banana… I would have guessed this was a lot younger. White peach. Soft garden flowers and grass. Just a tiny hint of oak. Simple, quite lightweight but not bad at all.
Mouth: sweet fruits (pears, citrus, apple) but enough tingling spices to emphasise its 17 years of age this time (pepper, ginger, liquorice, soft aniseed). Quite some vanilla as well. Malt. Freshly sawn oak. Roasted almonds.
Finish: slightly hot and spicy (something curry-like?). Rather long.
Is it young, is it old? It’s an in-between malt. It’s interesting enough and quite modern in style. I wonder how this would evolve if you kept it in wood for another 20 years. Readily available. Around € 65.
Score: 82/100