Glendronach is the OG to the Sherry game - it has always seemed to me that it's not recognised enough, that before Sherry was Sherry and everyone was head over heels for whiskies aged in the Spanish Andalusian fortified wine, it was Glendronach that had always made Sherry ageing its very foundation.

And so it must be reiterated that if you're a Sherried whisky lover in a world full of Sherry matured whiskies, you have to recognise who the OG is, which might as well stand for Original Glendronach. Now this matters because whilst most distilleries use Sherry as a means of finishing off their whiskies, and so the whisky gets a shorter stint in the Sherry cask, and a much longer maturation period in typically ex-Bourbon, for Glendronach it's Sherry right from the start - namely Pedro Ximenez (PX) and Oloroso - which forms the basis for all Glendronach whiskies (which then can be given another cask that's used to finish it - but it always starts with Sherry). It then stands to reason that whichever type of cask the whisky spends the most time in, it most takes after, and so if you're looking for a deeply Sherried expression, well, who do we turn to? The Original Glendronach.

| Read: [88 Bamboo Interviews] Dr Rachel Barrie On How Nature Shapes Whisky More Than A Master Blender Ever Could, & The Future Of The Glendronach, Benriach and Glenglassaugh Single Malts

This wasn't at all coincidence, as Glendronach's founder James Allardice, who founded the Highland Scotch distillery in 1826, had been a pioneer in having Sherry casks sourced from Jerez de la Frontera in southern Spain which was then brought to Scotland for use with whisky maturation. Allardice had believed that the combination of Sherry's exotic rarity, porosity and natural tannins would create a more intense flavour profile that would allow for Glendronach to stand out. Today, almost 200 years later, the distillery is under the watch of the one and only Dr Rachel Barrie, who combines the use of Scottish Larchwood wooden washbacks, saxophone shaped stills, traditional dunnage warehouses, and of course those Spanish Sherry casks, to together carry on the Glendronach legacy.

Gasp! The Glendronach 40 Year Old! And yes, it is as dark as you think it is!

But there is something else that plays a massive role in how the whiskies develop that we have yet to mention - and really is in fact the most precious element of it all - and that is time. You can't buy it, you can't make it move any faster (or slower for that matter), and yet its hand in whiskymaking is invisible yet monumental - and guess what, we're about to go through what will prove to be an incredibly instructive masterclass on how Glendronach evolves with time!

Today we're incredibly fortunate to get to try a three whisky flight that will take us through from the Glendronach 21 Year Old to the newly released Glendronach 30 Year Old and 40 Year Old (that's also denoted as the 2025 Edition)!

Let's go!

Whisky Review: Glendronach 21 Year Old Single Malt Scotch, 48% ABV

Replacing the formerly known Glendronach Parliament, we have the newly refreshed, more modern and stylish Glendronach 21 Year Old - and to be clear, this change is only in packaging design, with the whisky inside the same as before!

This is aged in the classic Glendronach Oloroso and PX Sherry casks.

Tasting Notes

Aroma: Rich, ripe and deep, opening with layers of dark dried fruits – plums, raisins, figs and cherries – set against candied orange and sticky treacle. Some caramel, honey and confectionary sweetness sit alongside accents of dark chocolate and a faint touch of herbs and spice, developing into malty, biscuity cereal notes, and with more time a grainy barley husk character.

Taste: Spiced and aromatic, with dried dark fruits once again forming the core but here with bitter chocolate and dry oak take on more dominant roles, along with caramel, and dense molasses. Warmth is steady and carries accents of liquorice and a thread of mint and cloves cutting through the richness.

Finish: Long and persistent, marked by firm dry oak and tobacco. Nutmeg and ginger spices linger along with bitter chocolate and trace espresso.

My Thoughts

This is an excellent and undeniably luscious Sherry-dominant expression - balanced enough that you wouldn’t call it a Sherry ‘bomb’. The nose is luscious, while the palate shifts towards spiced oakiness and a bittersweet chocolate core. The finish stretches on with layered oak spice and espresso dryness.

The tannic oak spice does tip towards bitterness and dryness at points, yet the PX casks smooths it over, lending a rewarding sweetness and polish to the experience, especially on the nose and finish.

Interestingly, tasting this in a flight along with a Glendronach 30 Year Old would reveal more malty notes, giving this Glendronach 21 a more malt-driven edge beneath its Sherried identity.

Whisky Review: Glendronach 30 Year Old Single Malt Scotch, 46.8% ABV

Newly released, the Glendronach 30 Year Old is a marriage of three styles of Sherry casks - PX, Oloroso and this time Amontillado. Amontillado is a dry style that derives from the classic Fino Sherry, where it then distinguishes itself by undergoing more oxidative ageing to produce more of that nuttiness and richness. It is less oxidative and dry compared to Oloroso, yet at the same time less sweet compared to PX.

Tasting Notes

Aroma: Rich and opulent, showing immediate depth with morello cherry and concentrated Port-like notes; cherry, red currant and strawberry jam woven together with raisins, figs, prunes, softer dried apricots and plums. Nutty marzipan sweetness comes through alongside a faint umami of soy sauce, while medjool dates add further concentrated richness. A minor layer of cereal character and a hint of oxidative Sherry.

Taste: Sweet and rich with an immediate burst of mulled and stewed fruits, though the texture leans more toward delicacy than density. Much of the red fruit character from the nose carries over, joined by sticky date pudding, brown sugar and a dried fruit cake note. Some toasted almond and almond skins add definition and tannins, carried forward by subtle leather.

Finish: Warm and lingering, marked by distinctive toasted oak and caramel. An array of baking spices come forward led by nutmeg and cinnamon, joined by a whiff of savoury rancio, carrying just a trace of rubbery industrial character in the background.

My Thoughts

This expression shows great complexity and balance, rich in aroma yet balanced in texture. It evolves from concentrated fruit into spiced oak with grace, with the body leaning towards balance rather than intensity. The initial fruit character is broad and layered, though what makes it stand out are the secondary notes that likely come from the savouriness and textural variety from the Amontillado cask - the marzipan sweetness, the faint umami edge, the bitter almond skin, and the distinctive rancio all seem to build an extra layer of complexity on top of the core red fruits and baking spices.

Whisky Review: Glendronach 40 Year Old Single Malt Scotch, 43.9% ABV

And finally we get to the also newly released Glendronach 40 Year Old (2025 Edition). This comes from a small number of hand-selected Spanish Oak Oloroso and PX casks that were married over 40 years. 

Tasting Notes

Aroma: Immediately perfumed, floral and layered. It opens with the familiar Sherried fruits of the earlier Glendronach expressions, but here they are joined by sweeter oak-driven notes of vanilla and cocoa and a brighter orchard fruit influence. Polished red and dark fruits come through – blackcurrant, cassis, and nearly overripe berries – layered with apricots, ripe peaches, and plums. There’s a distinctive aromatic lift of rose perfume and potpourri, while touches of mint, slate, and petrichor bring freshness. A faint sweet herbaceousness of herbal lozenges lingers in the background.

Taste: Stewed dark fruits – blackcurrants, prunes, raisins and soft apricots – balanced by an equally present sweet oak character. The profile is bright and fairly lifted despite its age. Chocolate espresso and vanilla thread through with baking spices, with an impression of fruit cake soaked in Sherry syrup. Some citrus peels cut through the richness underneath.

Finish: Long, layered but quite delicate with white florals and honey, accented by warming cinnamon and a trace of clove. Caramel and toffee notes soften into a final sparkle of spice, sweet cocoa and espresso.

My Thoughts

The nose is beyond perfumed, chock full of floral, ripe fruit and oak-driven elements. The palate shifts the focus towards sweet oak, showing also more chocolate, espresso, and vanilla than expected, yet it never feels heavy. The texture also leans more lifted and supple, rather surprising for its age - never feeling overoaked or tannic at any point. What stands out most is this smooth progression from stewed fruits at the core into light sweet cacao, vanilla, and a faint citrus brightness, finally resolving into white florals at the end.

The 21 feels immediately luscious and fruit-forward, and while you’d expect it to lean more heavily into the classic “Sherry bomb” profile, its malty richness becomes more evident as we progress down the flight.

The 40, by contrast, is really perfumed and focuses on refinement and poise, showing how gracefully Glendronach spirit can age, with an emphasis that shifts toward oak sweetness and florals rather than heavy layers of Sherry-driven notes.

My favourite of the trio is the 30 which sits right in between with both balance and complexity in my opinion. It has the richness and layered fruit of the 21, but the addition of Amontillado casks gives it more nuance – those savoury, nutty and oxidative elements elevating it beyond fruit and spice alone.

@CharsiuCharlie