The Experimental Series is a collection of apparently limited edition whiskies from Glenfiddich which have been out since 2016. The first bottle never really appealed to me with it being an ale cask finished whisky. While whisky is a distilled un-hopped beer I just don’t like beer/ale/lager

*I said it!*

The first one was the cheapest and the next affordable is this Project XX release which I wasn’t keen on when I first heard about it. I think on Twitter I was pretty cheeky about it being a confused and unbalanced affair from the sounds of it. Hardly very fair having never tried it but when a whisky is apparently designed by committee of 20 people each picking a cask to add to the blend it doesn’t particularly sound coherent.

The casks chosen were of course blended and finialised by the very experienced master blender Brian Kinsman. That has been the key to the release being an apparent success with a second batch being recently released. This review is on that second release which is still available for under 50 pounds in the UK. The blend has loads of different things in like from bourbon casks and sherry type casks to port pipes of various sizes and ages.

Tasting Notes

Colour – golden orange

Nose –  For the ensemble of casks there is so much of the Glenfiddich pear flavoured spirit and lots of heavily wood influenced notes of cinnamon and pencil shavings. This is forward of a metallic type minerals note which is pretty unusual. This develops into sherry influenced notes of orange peel, toffee and raisins.

Palate – The spirit isn’t thick but isn’t too thin either with the nose following into the palate. The same notes are there but not as pronounced on the palate as the nose which is kind of disappointing. The development adds in the most subtle of lactic notes which just pops its head out of the chorus of other fruity flavours.

Finish – The finish is very long and bursting with the wood spices from all those pretty well aged casks. There is layer on layer of fruits, chocolates, coffees and wood all the way through.

Final Thoughts

This is a great little release from Glenfiddich of an unknown number of bottles. It has all the DNA and hall marks of any of the age stated Glenfiddich’s of which I have tried the 12,15 and 18. The extra layers of casks though has certainly added lots of new interest and complexity. For 50 pounds and 47% ABV I think this is pretty great value just now and definitely recommended.