Glenfiddich IPA Review - The New Generation of Glenfiddich

Glenfiddich IPA single malt scotch initially struck me as a gimmick. Maybe it is a gimmick. But who doesn't love a good gimmick? This is a tasty pour of whisky. My internal monologue mocked it at first, though—why would the best selling single malt scotch in the world jump on a trend like IPA barrel finishing? Sure, IPAs are trendy, but will they sell single malt scotch? 

This is coming from someone that loves IPAs (in the fermented, but not distilled, format). Pour me a high proof IPA, and I’m likely going to enjoy it. But whisky finished in beer barrels have been done before, and the results have been mixed. I was skeptical. Side-note: Craft beer has moved way past IPAs and is all about sour beers now, or Vermont IPAs, I can’t keep track. Either way. Why are you trying so hard to be trendy, Glenfiddich?

If you’ve read up to this point, you already know how this goes. This is the part where I admit that I was wrong. I’m now convinced that Glenfiddich IPA is exactly what this brand needs. When you have a collection of over a hundred whiskies in your whisky cabinet, you’re less likely to reach for that Glenfiddich 12 or even the much beloved Glenfiddich 15. They’re good whiskies. But are they interesting whiskies? Is IPA technically a better whisky then the Glenfiddich 15 Year Old Solera? Probably not. Is it more interesting to drink than the 15? It is!

Glenfiddich IPA has that edge that keeps things interesting. It’s a marketing gimmick, packaged in a beautiful bottle (I mean seriously, the new Glenfiddich bottles look is incredible), containing a whisky that’s fun, fresh, and interesting. Cheers to that.

Glenfiddich IPA
Glenfiddich Distillery
Category: Single malt scotch, NAS, Beer Barrel Finished
Score: 85

Nose: Baking bread, soda, dark oily chocolate, light cinnamon and caramel.

Palate: Rich lightly melted caramel, with soda bread notes coming through. Those notes part ways for bubbly ginger soda pop and oily peppery notes.

★ ★ ☆ ☆ Your great regular rotation whisky that’ll come and go in a category that's got a lot of competition. 
It’s difficult to taste the IPA influences. Perhaps that touch of soda bread? Keeping true to Glenfiddich Distillery, this is a smooth and rich whisky with a little edge that’s welcomed in today’s whisky world. I plan to have a bottle in my cabinet on rotation.

*Whisky Cabinet Rating Explained:

☆ ☆ ☆ ☆  Not recommended
★ ☆ ☆ ☆  Good whisky, but not a ‘must-have’
★ ★ ☆ ☆  Your great regular rotation whisky that'll come and go
★ ★ ★ ☆  Excellent, a near must-have
★ ★ ★ ★  Extraordinary, memorable, and original