Glenfiddich Perpetual Collection Vat 03 15 Year Old - 70cl/50.2%

Glenfiddich Distillery was founded in 1886 by William Grant in Dufftown, Speyside, Scotland, with the first spirit flowing on Christmas Day 1887. As a family-owned enterprise, it pioneered the global promotion of single malt whisky in 1963, innovating with the Solera system for consistent and complex maturation.

This Glenfiddich Perpetual Collection Vat 03 15 Year Old is a Speyside single malt whisky, at 50.2% ABV, non-chill filtered with added caramel coloring. Matured in European oak sherry and ex-bourbon casks using a perpetual vat system, enhancing over 15 years of maturation. It features a golden color with reddish hue; the nose is intriguingly complex with sweet heather honey, vanilla fudge, and rich dark fruits. The palate is full-bodied and silky smooth, offering warm spice, nutty marzipan, and dark sherry oak for a richly satisfying sweetness. Overall, it balances fruit, spice, and oak layers with strength.

The Solera system is a fractional aging and blending method using tiered oak barrels (criaderas), with the bottom tier called solera containing the oldest liquid. Annually, a portion (typically 1/4 to 1/3) is drawn from the solera for bottling, replenished from the tier above, and new spirit added to the top, creating a perpetual cycle. This ensures consistent average age and flavor complexity. In whisky, like Glenfiddich 15 Year, it enhances depth by merging sherry and bourbon cask influences, yielding rich fruit, honey, spice, and oak layers. Features include non-chill filtration for natural texture; flavors are warm and sweet with dark fruits, marzipan, and long finish, demonstrating balance and innovation.