When I wrote this review, I noticed that I hadn’t tried a lot of GlenDronach lately. The distillery seemed to have lost some momentum, offering the same expressions as 15 years ago.
But just as I thought that, they announced a new premiumized bottled design, albeit with the same line-up. Their single casks largely go by unnoticed in my whisky sphere already, with high prices pushing them out of reach. If the core range would go down the same road, then they will end up in the same drawer as Macallan. Funnily enough GlenDronach poached a lot of Macallan’s market share back then, and now they choose to follow their path…
Anyway, GlenDronach has two travel retail expressions that I never tried. One is GlenDronach Forgue 10 Year Old, matured in Oloroso and Pedro Ximénez casks. The other is Boynsmill 16 Year Old which adds Port casks to the mix.
GlenDronach Forgue 10 yo (43%, OB +/- 2024)
Nose: a bit shy, but you get a hint of raisins and dark berries, as well as some walnuts and roasted chestnuts. Then minty notes and a grassy / malty side that makes it a tad harsher. Black tea, hints of orange peels and a dusty plywood note. Less sherry than the tin makes you believe.
Mouth: a similar hint of youngish wood, along with black pepper, nutmeg and ginger. Baking spice is prominent, followed by milk chocolate, butterscotch and raisins. Then burnt cake and bitter nuts come forward. Some orange notes too, but sherried flavours seem to fade quickly, making space for some bitterness.
Finish: medium, on pepper, malty notes, nutmeg and orange.
Fairly average. Not necessarily a bad whisky, but disappointing if you’ve experienced some of the GlenDronach single casks for instance. It seems I’ve never formally reviewed the 12 Year Old, but it left a better impression in my memory than this Forgue. Theoretically only in travel retail, but also available from other retailers like The Whisky Exchange. I found a sample at Whiskysite.nl.