Bought – Waitrose, 11th November 2013
Ratings:
80/100 – Whisky Bible 2013
80/100 might not seem like an amazing mark from Jim Murray but that still ranks as a “good whisky worth trying”. He deducts most points for the nose of this whisky. I don’t know about you but I tend not to spend a huge amount of time sniffing my dram. I’m more about the tasting! And with Glenrothes we have the exact opposite of the smoky, peaty Islay malts. The ‘Select Reserve’ is the entry-level, typical example of the Glenrothes taste – citrus, floral, bit of spice, dried fruit, creamy finish and enough body to keep you feeling satisfied.
I had a look for a second opinion on Malt Maniacs review page and two dramsters have reviewed this ‘Select Reserve’, one giving it 78/100 and the other 80/100, which is consistent with the Whisky Bible. But it wasn’t the ratings that made me want to buy this. My two main reasons were – 1) every collection should have an example of Glenrothes and 2) the ‘Select Reserve’ is mentioned in Ian Buxton’s book “101 Whiskies to Try Before You Die”. Not only that but he says this bottling “typifies the distillery house character”. So if you want to know the backbone taste of every bottle of Glenrothes there is, look no further than the ‘Select Reserve’.
Oh, one last thing. I was going to say that the packaging is terrible (which it is) but they proudly state on the side of the cardboard box that it’s “from 100% primary unbleached fibre from sustainable forest” so well done Glenrothes! And I love the funky bottle shape too!
Here’s Erik Wait with his review on You Tube (July 2016):
Whisky Den 