The Glenfarclas distillery is one of the last 'family' distilleries in
Speyside. Glenfarclas was licensed in 1836 by farm tenant Robert
Hay. For a while around 1850 Glenfarclas was also known under
the name 'Glenlivet' - but we all know who won the battle for that
name... Nowadays, only Glenlivet distillery can use that name.

After the commotion caused by the
Pattison crisis, Glenfarclas enjoyed a
few peaceful and quiet decades. It
wasn't until 1960 that the next big
event in the history of Glenfarclas
took place; the number of stills was
doubled from two to four.
 
The production capacity of the
distillery was expanded again soon
afterwards; in 1976 the number of
stills was extended to six.

A local newspaper of the time wrote about
the Pattisons: 'Advertising was resorted to
on a scale previously undreamt of.' In 1897
the Pattisons spent 20.000 pounds on a
world wide advertising campaign. In those
days one could still buy or build a distillery
for that amount of money. In 1898 they
even spent 60.000 pounds on advertising
for brands like 'The Doctor' and 'The Gordon'.
 
Banks and investers swarmed around the
brothers like flies around a dung heap. For
years the Pattisons had no problems with
attracting the necessary funding for their
various schemes. They lived the good life
and built opulent houses in Edinburgh and
the Lowlands.
 
Like every bubble, this one had to burst
some time. When it did, it turned out that
some business practices of the Pattisons
were illegal - so they ended up in prison...

Glenfarclas was rebuilt in 1896, shortly before Pattison, Elder & Co were bankrupted in 1898.
This bankruptcy sent shockwaves through the Scotch whisky industry; its effects were so profound
that more than a century later the story of 'The Pattison Crisis' is still being told in the whisky world as
a cautionary tale. Given its relevance to the history of Glenfarclas, I'll include some 'headlines' on this
page. The brothers Robert & Walter Pattison started out as dairy traders in Edinburgh. When demand
for Scotch whisky exploded in the 1880's and 1890's the Pattisons smelled an opportunity and started
a blending & retailing company in 1887. In 1889 they collected 100.000 pounds at the stock exchange.

When I visited the Speyside area for the first time in 2003 the Glenfarclas distillery was one of the 'targets' of the tag team of certified malt maniacs that had joined our pilgrimage. I don't know if the fact that Glenfarclas is one of the last remaining 'family' distilleries has something to do with it, but the maniacs were treated like royalty in the glorious tasting room. Read my report on the first maniacal trip to Scotland in my Liquid Log for all the details...

In 1865 Glenfarclas was obtained from Robert Hay's executors by
John Grant who then let it to John Smith until 1870. By that time,
John (the 'Smith' one) had built Cragganmore for himself, so after
1870 Glenfarclas was run by J. & G. Grant. In 1895 the Glenfarclas
-Glenlivet Distillery Co Ltd formed, half of which was owned by
Pattison, Elder & Co and the other half by the Grant family.

After 'The Pattison Crisis' the Grant family
took over full control of the distillery again.

The flamboyant Pattison brothers were inventive pioneers in advertising.
They were not discouraged by the fact that mass media like radio
and television were not invented yet. The Pattisons
just used the 'tools' available to them at the time.
At one time these tools even included parrots...
The brothers distributed no less than 500 grey
parrots amongst grocers. And these were no
ordinary parrots; they were carefully trained to
continuously shout 'Buy Pattisons' at the top of
their little bird lungs. Surprisingly enough, many
people followed the advice of these 'bird brains'.

Thanks to stunts like these (and massive sums of borrowed money) the Pattison's whisky empire
grew rapidly and they soon owned half of Glenfarclas and large chunks of Oban and Aultmore.

In the year 1900 they decided to
change the name of the company back
to J. & G. Grant - and the operation has
continued to operate under that very
same name until the present day.

1) Sorry; this site section is still under reconstruction - trivia will be added later...
 

Here are my notes on a few Glenfarclas expressions (mostly official bottlings) I've tried so far;

Glenfarclas '105' (60%, OB, No Age Statement, Bottled 2004)
Nose: Sweet and nutty. Big and complex. We have another winner, it seems.
After a while some smoke as well, followed but more and more organics. Prune jam?
Taste: Very similar to the nose; big, sweet and a little nutty. Then more fruits.
After a while the sherry becomes much more obvious - and a tad overpowering.
Second sampling: Just as big and powerful in the nose as the first time. Lovely.
Sherry. Amazing power, although it doesn't seem quite as complex as the first time.
It has organics and spices, but it's not very 'deep'. Very pleasant on the palate.
Once I got used to the powerful profile I got lots of fruit and maybe a hint of smoke too?
Score: 88 points - this is one impressive whisky that packs quite a punch. Interesting. Could Michael Jackson have been right all along? Previous batches scored in the lower 80's, but this seems much, much better.

Glenfarclas 12yo (43%, OB, Bottled +/- 2005)
Nose: Strong grains & glue. Sweeter, fruitier notes after a minute. Faintest hint of peat? Nah...
The sweets and fruits seem much more prominent after some breathing. Rhubarb and sorrel.
Hint of melon. Oh boy, this is much more enjoyable during the second round! Now I'm getting spices.
Taste: Flat, watery start. Bitter, deconstructed centre. Smoother towards the short finish. 'Blendy'.
Round 2: On the palate it's still quite weak in the start, but it powers up nicely in the centre. Longer finish too.
Score: 80 points - It seems that all it needed was some time and air. What a difference!

Glenfarclas 15yo (46%, OB, Bottled +/- 1997, L7273BB 1 15 27, 5cl)
Nose: Hey, this smells a little 'antique'. Something organical in the direction of leather. Oriental spices.
Furniture polish. A whiff of dust. Sweetens out a bit with time. Nice! After a while it takes a nuttier direction.
Never a dull moment with this Glenfarclas. Not as sweet and fruity as the Glenfarclas 15yo of today.
Very interesting nonetheless. This shows a lot of development over time. The score kept climbing up.
Taste: Ah, it's much sweeter on the palate than in the nose. Solid. Fruity. Very nice. Intriguing spicy twist.
It remains very nice for a long time, but after some 20 minutes bitter notes take over.
Score: 83 points - I'd prefer the sweeter, fruitier 15yo of today, but arguably this is more interesting.

Glenfarclas 15yo (46%, OB, Bottled 2004)
Nose: Fruity and sherried with a hint of smoke. Very rich. Furniture polish. Rum.
Second nosing: Apart from the sherry and fruit I got some string beans in the nose.
Taste: Woody at first, growing more sherried and fruity in the centre. Feels good.
It seems a little woody and weak on the palate first, but it powers up very quickly.
The subdued sweetness takes quite some time to emerge. Extremely long finish.
Score: 86 points - another kick-ass Glenfarclas. Have I underestimated it in the past?

Glenfarclas 15yo (46%, OB, Bottled +/- 2006)
Nose: Sherried. Fruity. Polished. Hint of smoke? Some organics. Woody on the palate.
After time the nose grows more and more complex - although it does have just a few imperfections.
Taste: Great mouth feel. It lacks just a little sweetness and doesn't have quite enough 'staying power'.
Score: 87 points - there's a lot to love here...

Glenfarclas 25yo (43%, OB, Bottled +/- 2005)
Nose: Sweet and polished, but not very expressive at first. Opens up over time, growing more unique.
Round 2: Again sweet, but there are lots of lovely fruits now as well. You just have to work at it a little.
Taste: Hint of peat. Strong tannins. Quite bitter towards the finish. Gritty. Still, there are moments of glory.
Score: 85 points - but give it time. After a few minutes both the nose and palate open up.

Glenfarclas 30yo (43%, OB, Bottled 2004)
Nose: Wow!!! We have a winner! Rich and sweet like a luxurious fruit cake. Then smoke, wood and organics.
Sweaty socks. More 'port' than 'sherry'. Extremely entertaining, even though there's something 'artificial'.
Taste: Sherried and a little woody. Fresher and fruitier towards the centre. Some lingering fruits.
It appears just a little 'thin' compared to the 'thick' nose; that's too bad. A mightily pleasant malt.
After a few minutes I got much more smoke on the palate. Faintest hint of liquorice in the finish?
A magnificent malt, although in the end, it's perhaps just a tad too winey in the finish.
Score: 90 points - had it been as 'meaty' on the palate, it would have gone higher.
So, this scores four more points than an earlier batch sampled at the distillery in 2003.

Glenfarclas 1991/2004 (46%, OB for LMW, Oloroso Cask #5620, Bottling for La Maison du Whisky in Paris)
Nose: Distinguished; polished oak and pipe tobacco. The faintest hint of soap perfume.
Sherry, wood and tobacco. Almost perfect; maybe even just a little too perfect.
And yes, once again some organics emerge after a while. Stinging nettle? Salmiak?
This feels like a 'luxurious' malt. Speculaas spices. Rotting leaves. Mushrooms. Brilliant.
Taste: Sweet and solid. A fabulous fruity explosion in the centre - what a knockout malt.
Wood, smoke and salmiak become more dominant over time, while it flattens out a bit.
Lots of smoke on the palate - it seems much more dominant than in other official bottlings
Score: 89 points - in the end the palate is just a bit too woody and smoky for the 90's.
A very nice surprise indeed - and confirmation that I'm indeed an Oloroso fan.

Glenfarclas 1974/2004 (50.5%, OB for The Whisky Exchange, Refill sherry hogshead #6041, 246 bottles)
Nose: Big, sweet and polished. Spices in the background. Honey. Baklava. Then leather & organics.
Taste: Soft, fruity start with a pinch of smoke growing stronger and stronger. Menthos freshness.
Score: 89 points - another one that's right up my alley. A fine showcase of the power of sherry.
Revision: Oh yeah! Fruity and sherried, with spices and organics joining the party after a while.
Big and sweet on the palate. Great fruity centre. Yep, I stand by my 89 points. Great stuff.

Glenfarclas 1969/2007 (56,2%, OB 'Familly Casks', C#3184, 148 Bts.)
Nose: Beautiful old sherry style; fruits and woods. Vague hint of rubber? Cinnamon?
Taste: First sweet and complex fruits, then more wood and some smoke. Cinnamon. Quite extreme in the finish.
Score: 95 points - too bad I tried this in the MM Awards 2007 madness, so I only made rudimentary notes.
 

These were not all the (official and independent) expressions of Glenfarclas whisky I've tried over the years.
My Track Record used to contain a complete overview of all the single malts I've tried, but when I passed the 2000 malts mark (and the complete whisky list wouldn't fit on two separate HTML pages anymore) I gave up. My Liquid Log still contains my tasting notes on most single malts I've sampled and scored, though. You can find a specific expression through the search box at the top of each distillery profile. The mAlmanac now contains (purely personal) selections of some of the best single malts and the worst whiskies I've tried so far - as well as the ones with the highest 'Bang-For-Your-Buck' value. But those tasting notes and scores only reflect my own, purely personal opinions. On Serge's distillery profile on Whiskyfun you can find another perspective on the whisky made at this distillery. Check out the Malt Maniacs Monitor on Malt Maniacs for my scores on all expressions I've tried so far - and those of almost all the other certified malt maniacs as well. The Malt Maniacs Matrix contains a few thousand single malts that were sampled and scored by at least four different malt maniacs, so you can compare our individual opinions.