The Glenrothes Vintage Reserve

By Kurt Maitland

Rating: B

The Glenrothes Vintage Reserve
(Credit: The Glenrothes)

The Glenrothes is the namesake single malt Scotch whisky from the Glenrothes Distillery, located beside the Burn of Rothes in the Speyside region. While the Glenrothes Distillery is owned by Edrington, the Glenrothes Single Malt as a brand is owned by Berry Bros & Rudd. Their whisky used in Scotch whiskies blends such as Edrington’s Cutty Sark and The Famous Grouse.

The Glenrothes is mainly matured in ex-Sherry casks and some ex-Bourbon casks. What helps make the Glenrothes distinctive from most other single malts in that its bottlings are not determined by age, but by vintage. This Vintage Reserve single malt is a Fall 2015 addition to their core line, bottled at 40% abv drawn from 10 different vintages ranging from 1989 to 2007.

The Scotch
Color: Light copper
Nose: A beautiful nose, full of citrus, cocoa and honey
Taste: This is an easy drinking whiskey. It’s slightly dry, almost astringent at the start with a nice full fruity body. All of the flavors picked up by the nose make an appearance as you sip this whiskey, especially the fruit and the cocoa. This is a great whiskey to start off a novice Scotch drinker but it offers enough to appeal to a veteran Scotch drinker.
Finish: The slight astringency turns slightly peppery, with a long bite that belies its standard proof

The Glenrothes Vintage Reserve
(Credit: Kurt Maitland)

With water, the flavor peels back some of the astringency and makes the sipping that much easier. The water also cuts down on the peppery finish and leaves you with a more cinnamon aftertaste.

The Price
This release will not hurt the budget. A fair amount of Glenrothes line sits comfortably in the “bang for the buck” lineup for Scotch. Generally it runs between $42 and $52 dollars US when you find it and I definitely recommend you seek it out. In the UK, expect to pay £40.