Acclaimed Glen Grant to launch milestone whisky

By James Atkinson

Speyside, Scotland single malt whisky distillery Glen Grant will soon release a limited edition whisky to mark 50 years of service by master distiller Dennis Malcolm.

Dubbed 'Five Decades', the new whisky will be released in time for Father's Day, Glen Grant brand manager Kirsty Basman told TheShout.

"To celebrate his 50 years working at Glen Grant, Dennis Malcolm has taken a barrel from every decade that he's worked at the distillery and put it into a limited edition release," she said.

"The oldest liquid in there will be 50 years, and then he'll take something from the 60s, 70s, 80s and 90s.

"It's beautifully gift boxed, beautifully packaged and it's going to retail for $169."

She said Campari Australia also hopes to introduce Glen Grant 16 Year Old into Australia at some point, adding to the two SKUs currently available in this market, entry level product The Major's Reserve as well as the Ten Year Old. 

Basman said Glen Grant provides the perfect, easy-drinking introduction to single malts for consumers who are moving across from blended whiskies.

"We've got a couple of retailers that always recommend they start with the Glen Grant first," she said.

"From a price perspective they can get a single malt for sub-$50. The Major's Reserve is $49 and the Ten Year Old is $69."

Glen Grant Ten Year Old 'breathtaking'

The Glen Grant distillery has won considerable praise from the critics in recent months, with Jim Murray's Whisky Bible 2013 naming the Ten Year Old the winner for the 10 Years & Under (Multiple Casks) category.

The Ten Year Old was awarded 95 points out of a possible 100, with Murray commenting that the current release has "excelled to the point of taking the breath away". 

"Obviously very high quality ex-bourbon casks are meeting Glen Grant's uniquely crisp barley with rare panache. This is a tough category to win, but has done so with aplomb," Murray said.