If you’ve ever asked me about my favourite whiskey, I’ve probably told you I don’t have a favourite bottle but I do have a couple of favourite distilleries; and The GlenDronach is one of them.

I have had the pleasure of reviewing a number of GlenDronach bottlings over the last couple years, with my most recent favourite being Cask #217 from their most recent release of Cask Bottling Batch #19. If you’re interested you can find that review here. So when Gabriela from their PR agency reached out to me about reviewing The GlenDronach Grandeur Batch 11 I immediately said yes.

One note of housekeeping before we can get to the whisky: these samples were provided to me by The GlenDronach and their PR firm in exchange for my honest review. The presence, or absence, of free product has no influence on my review.

In the last few months I’ve had the opportunity to enjoy drams of GlenDronach from some fantastic 25+ year single casks, and let me tell you; they literally do not make it like they used to. The older vintages of GlenDronach are so rich, and decadent with malt, sherry, and vanilla coating your entire palate. The sulphuric notes of the sherry act as the perfect vessel for all the other flavours.

While those are usually bottled at cask strength, Grandeur 11 is bottled at a respectable 48.9% ABV. I am hoping that this bottling has some of the same flavour notes as above, seeing as it is a 28 year single malt Scotch aged in Pedro Ximenez and Oloroso Sherry casks.

Nose: Sweet raisins, chocolate, mocha, vanilla, cherry bakewell tart, salted caramel, cherry coke.

Palate: Bitter and heavy oak dominate the palate, while notes of raisin, dried fruit, cherry coke, and a syrupy sweetness lie just below the surface.

In summation, GlenDronach Grandeur is a delicious, if not slightly over-oaked, release from this storied distillery and its famed master blender Dr. Rachel Barrie. I’m always grateful for the opportunity to try bottles like this as I usually cannot afford the price tag, which in this case MSRP is $800.