Culture | Travel

Island Dram: Glenfiddich Gran Reserva 21-year-old

As the mercury rises, drinking whisky can seem a wee bit counter-intuitive. Not for nothing is this revitalising libation known in its homeland of Scotland as ‘highland central heating’ — a good, generous dram never fails to warm the cockles.

But in the steamier months, perhaps you’re not looking for a drink designed to be taken by the hearth of a lochside cottage. You want something a little more tropical — yet still, sophisticated.

To wind down as the summer sun sets, may we suggest a tumbler of the new Glenfiddich Gran Reserva 21-year-old? As its Cuban-influenced packaging suggests, this iconoclastic whisky is given a Caribbean spin via finishing in carefully selected, premium rum casks.

The result is a uniquely ‘beachy’ Scotch with a real touch of the islands to it — hints of banana, figs, smoke, pepper, ginger, lime and spices abound. Rather than highland central heating, Gran Reserva 21 is pure bottled sunshine.

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