A Never to be repeated Release
This whisky is highly collectable & will only go up in price as time goes by
COMPLETELY SOLD OUT IN RETAIL OUTLETS
Glenfiddich Snow Phoenix, a limited-edition single malt Scotch whisky bottled in 2010.
This whisky’s creation was inspired by the collapse of several Glenfiddich distillery roofs in January 2010, following weeks of heavy snow and record low temperatures. Weighed down by four feet of densely compacted snow, the roofs collapsed and exposed hundreds of maturing oak casks to the night sky. In wintery conditions and temperatures of -19ËÂÂC, distillery staff swung into action – working round the clock to clear the snow.
“Standing amongst the wreckage and exposed casks, we were working out our next steps and assessing the situation,” recalled.Glenfiddich Malt Master Brian Kinsman.
“I was thinking about how the casks, some of which were very old, contained some beautiful whisky and it occurred to me that they would create a fantastic non-aged single malt. A limited-edition bottling from the whiskies in the damaged warehouses would be an appropriate way of celebrating the pioneering spirit of the distillery team at this moment in Glenfiddich’s history".
“A photographer was shooting the scene and rather fittingly, when we looked at the pictures, the light shining through the warehouse roofs looked like a phoenix rising above us. I suppose this was the moment of conception of Glenfiddich Snow Phoenix.”
To mark this defining moment the Snow Phoenix is marketed as “a Glenfiddich single malt Scotch whisky born of chance and adversity”.
Snow Phoenix was created by marrying together natural strength and non-chill filtered casks of different ages (between 12 y/o and 30 y/o) and finishes, including American oak and Oloroso sherry. The result is a single malt, gold in colour with bright copper highlights.
The Nose: Zippy, fruity nose, pears and grapes in syrup with nice raisin-y notes. Really succulent notes of honey…specifically, toasted buttered bread with honey. Cinnamon-y tannic notes probably represent the older whiskies in the bottle.
The Palate: Honeyed and fruity to start, with the Oloroso influence quietly coming through next to some hints of bittersweet chocolate. 47.6% doesn’t exactly scream high alcohol whisky, but this does begin to burn nicely on the palate. Grows really pretty spicy and numbing with the alcohol and wood building to a delicious, juicy, yet tannic fireball.
The Finish: Spicy and oaky with nice lingering acidity. Just the faintest wisp of wood smoke sneaks in towards the very end.
