Since I don't (yet) have any 30 year old whisky lying around, to celebrate AU$30K I am drinking two Glenfiddich 15YO Solera Reserves*: one old (left), one new (right):
To be honest, I'm not a fan of the new bottle design, especially the label. It's just too modern. As for the contents of the bottles, which is all that really matters, they are both quite similar, with the light fruitiness and spice that Glenfiddich is known for, though the new bottling is slightly more fruity and less spicy, and a bit smoother overall (no doubt more ex-sherry casks and less virgin casks). Almost disappointingly so; I much prefer the extra spice and intensity of the old bottling, which is vaguely reminiscent of a good American rye whiskey. Or maybe it's just a case of
They Changed It, Now It Sucks (warning: TV Tropes link). The new version is still good (especially for the price), just maybe not
as good as the old version.
*Yes, the solera aging process means a miniscule fraction of the whisky in this blend is indeed over 30 years old (37 in the case of the new bottling), so I could have just drunk one on a technicality, but that just wouldn't be right.
