A Glenfiddich Weekend at the Banff Springs Hotel

So what is it like drinking scotch worth more than your car?

In short, really fun.

At Glenfiddich's North of 50 event, I had the opportunity to taste their range of whiskies, including the rare 30-, 40- and 50-year-olds.

North of 50 was an incredible weekend getaway at the Banff Springs Hotel, put together for contest winners from across Canada who provided winning words of wisdom or advice from a father or mentor. A few of us media types got to tag along for the ride.

While all the winners had good words to share, I liked this one from J. Gulyes of Toronto, “That which comes by great ease can be dashed away in the very same breath. That which is fought and struggled for carries the greatest merit and defines the one who accomplished it.”

Glenfiddich is the last distillery in Scotland that maintains its own cooperage, employing coopers to produce barrels for their whiskey. As part of the weekend experience, Glenfiddich Head Cooper Ian MacDonald demonstrated how a barrel is made, and made it look very easy.

Although he slowed down the building process so that we could all get a good look, MacDonald can put a barrel together, take it apart and put it back together faster than you or I can build an Ikea bookcase. He has 41 years of experience...and it showed.

Watch a video of the barrel making demonstration

Our scotch tasting experience was organized around a tour of the hotel, with stations along the way serving the Glenfiddich 12-, 15-, 18- and 21-year-olds. Our tour was guided by hotel historian Dave Moberg and I would recommend the experience if you ever get the chance, you can’t help but learn a few things.

For example, the hotel and the distillery were both founded in 1887 and the founding president of Canadian Pacific Railway, the company that built the hotel, came from the same town as William Grant, the founder of Glenfiddich.

As for the whisky?

The 12-year-old is light and citric, with hints of pear and almost faintly sweet. Very refreshing.

The 15-year-old is finished in bourbon casks and pretty spicy, with a cinnamon note and a bit of orange peel.

The 18-year-old is finished in two barrels, Spanish sherry casks and American oak, with notes of tobacco, orange spice, toffee and an off-dry finish. I really enjoyed the 18-year-old.

The 21-year-old is a great whisky, a little sweeter, but with bitter toffee and dried fruits. It was paired with crème brulée, which was quite delicious.

We had a chance to taste the 30-, 40- and 50-year-olds at the wrap up dinner, an elegant affair held in Mount Steven Hall.

The 30-year-old is possibly the best bang for your buck — smooth, with butter, cinnamon spice, toffee and marmalade notes.

I found the 40-year-old a little intense, with a few bitter notes and lots of mineral, apricots and a touch of baked apple crumble. My dear friend Craig described it as ‘fiery,’ which might be the best description of all.

The 50-year-old, the most exclusive of Glenfiddich’s scotches, is currently priced at $26,000 and very hard to find. This was my second tasting of the 50-year-old, which was priced at over $60,000 two years ago and is probably still worth more than my liver, although I have yet to price out my liver.

For the next 10 years, only 50 bottles of the 50-year-old will be available for sale annually and there are only two bottles currently in Canada. One was brought over for this event and the other is rumoured to be in Quebec. If you have the money to consider buying it, you probably have too much — but I’d still like to be invited over for a tasting at your house.

The 50-year-old has hints of saddle leather and baked pear, with a mild mint leaf touch. Strangely delicate yet extremely intense and complex, it’s smooth, vibrant and a real treat to enjoy — especially over the finish that I can still taste a few weeks later.

See you at the next tasting of 50-year-old scotch.

Cheers!