The distillery long associated with producing the base mat for Famous Grouse has seen a wholesale revolution in the last decade or so. With its focus now seemingly on single malts and luxury, the Glenturret is turning heads.
Their site claims to be the oldest working distillery in Scotland, but rather than weather-worn facilities, their ownership under the purposely forged Glenturret Holding co. in 2018 has seen the location and its output reinvent itself as a premium whisky experience and destination… how many distilleries have their own Michelin starred restaurant and estate house that you can attend?
Whilst their core range has been building in recent years to include key age statement releases, they have also kept an entry-level NAS release which we are sampling here in the Triple Wood.
The three woods at play here with their base spirit are American and European oak sherry seasoned casks and Bourbon barrels.
The whisky has been released in annual batches with the percentage and profile tweaking ever so slightly from year to year. The sample here is the 2022 release, and weighs in at 45% ABV (the same as this year’s release) with previous years varying from 43-45%. The 2025 release is currently available around £62 GBP.
Nose
They’re hiding nothing with the name. It’s all about the oak scents at first. Sweet vanilla and charred oak are the most direct smells with a Wrigleys Juicy Fruit medley of sweet fruit then joining in.
Taste
A vanilla-y custard-like soft texture and flavours arrive before the oak spices kick in with stem ginger and hot cinnamon flashes. The heat and flavours on these remind me of Big Red gum! There’s a little bit of dark fruitiness in there too like raisins and those boozy smelling Christmas oranges, studded with cloves.
Finish
The triple wood influence takes over with white pepper flashes of heat.
Verdict
If you want wood… You got it!
The oaky flavours and spices really take hold over a lovely sweet and fruity malt. For me it’s a little too oaky and wooded. The name suggests that it’s wood-led, and some people like that. Personally though, too much of the spice dominates over the nicer hints of the fruit that you start off with. Having tried the ‘new’ 7yo and 12yo, I like where the fruit and malt you.
Speaking of that core range, boy did they go glam in 2020! The statuesque bottles and finessed branding all screams luxury. And I like that they batch produce it so that you can get those little variations year on year.
It’s not just the batch itself, I quite like that they’ve jiggled the percentage around each year to get the profile right. The influence of the newer Lalique ownership is clearly steering them in new upmarket directions. This year they’ve also boldly denounced the use of peat in any further production, so it’s still evolving, and it’s still good stuff coming from there. Just maybe don’t use this one as the dram to judge them by.
M
Dram disclosure: This sample was received as part of a promotional Tweet Tasting event led by TheWhiskyWire. All notes are intended as an honest, fair, and independent review of the whisky, and not as a promotion. Please drink responsibly. Please drink wisely.
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