Glenfiddich vs Glenlivet

Godslayer · November 19 2014 at 9:13PM

This is a question that has puzzled man kind for hundreds of years, is Glenfiddich or Glenlivet the Superior malt? Even Serge Valanetine of Whiskyfun has them tied. So I as which do you prefer Glenfiddichs apple notes, laced in caramel and vanilla or Glenlivets dried fruit notes.

I Presume everyone here has tried both of the 12 year old releases which I believe are tied. The 15 year old releases are fiddichs solera vs livets french oak, the 18 are fiddichs ancient reserve vs livets 18 year old. The 21's are archieve and a run finish respectfully. They both have numerous other bottlings, ranging from basic special editions, nadurra for example to cask of dreams releases.

As for my argument, glenfiddich is better as a young malt and livet is better as an older malt. Breaking even with their 15 year old releases. (Keeping in mind, I have only gone as high as glenfiddich 30 and glenlivet XXV. After that prices get silly and I lose interest.

Bonus Question,

Do you still feel these are the best malts for a single malt virgin to commence their journey with??

James_H · November 20 2014 at 1:16AM

The only age I've tried and can compare is the 18yo. I have to admit the Glenfiddich won it for me. The sweet apple and wonderful harmony was quite unlike any whisky I've tasted. I'm normally an intense smoke fan but I adored the Glenfiddich.

horst_s_2 · November 20 2014 at 8:48AM

I have tried all the standards of both distilleries. The problem both distilleries face is their huge amount of output. That means that there can not be an excellent cask selection, because the market demands so many bottles. You have to bottle all.

This results in less character of the whiskies in comparison to distilleries of the same size and less single malt production.

From my experience I guess, that Glenlivet uses more Sherry casks and more European oak than Glenfiddich. And this results in more dried fruit character than the light fruity Glenfiddich. If it comes to older single malts, I prefer the Glenlivet over the Glenfiddich because I like the harmony of distillery character and wood.