I was having lunch at Bottega Cafe in a suburb called Parkhurst in Johannesburg. I asked Savi (the owner) to recommend a whisky to pair with my lunch, and he suggested the Glenrothes. It was my first encounter with The Glenrothes Robur Reserve single malt Scotch whisky.
It was so delicious; I soon acquired my own bottle of Glenrothes Robur Reserve single malt. The Glenrothes is a Speyside whisky with the distillery going back to 1879. The Robur Reserve single malt derives its name from Quercus Robor, the Latin name for European or Spanish oak.
Matured in first-fill casks that had previously been used to mature Oloroso sherry, the Glenrothes Robur Reserve has no age statement. The rounder bottle shape of the Glenrothes bottles is unique when compared to the other whisky bottles.
There is a small label on the front, allowing one to appreciate the spirit on the inside. It is the opposite of, a bottle like Bruichladdich, which covers the entire bottle in a label. The Glenrothes distillery is part of the Edrington Group together with Macallan and Highland Park.
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The Glenrothes Robur Reserve Whisky Review
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REGION: Speyside
ABV: 47%
COLOUR: The colour of the whisky is light amber and golden. t’s quite light in colour compared to other whiskies that have been matured or finished in sherry casks.
PALATE: On tasting the Glenrothes Robur Reserve, I hit by honey and dried fruit. It’s quite a sweet whisky, but not in a subtle way. I could not pick up the sherry sweetness, but Jeannette felt it was there.
Other reviewers have picked up spices, but we only picked it up a bit later. Only on the third mouthful did I notice the spicy notes. As the whisky evolves in your mouth, the honey is accompanied by hints of vanilla and caramel.
FINISH: The finish is well executed, with an initial drop off followed by a long tail that finishes in dried apricot and spice.
RATING: EXCELLENT
It’s a warm, mouth-filling finish that we both loved. I noticed that Jim Murray scored the Glenrothes Robur Reserve 80.5 in the 2012 Whisky Bible. This rating is pretty ordinary by his standards. I cannot understand why because we both thought it was excellent.
The nose is great, the palette full-mouthed and warm, and the finish delicious. Sadly it looks like the Glenrothes Robur Reserve Scotch is discontinued. If that is the case, I am happy to have a bottle to enjoy.
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