Hi,
We've just cleared out my late father's home and found an unopened bottle of Glendronach 15yr aged whisky. I've no idea how long he had it but I have a few questions I'd like to ask you experts please:
1.) I was thinking of having this as a way of toasting my late father on his birthdays and at Xmas times. Once it is opened should it really be consumed within a set time?
2.) There is sediment or something in the bottom of the bottle which resembles bristles from a toothbrush. Do you know what those might be and whether it means the whisky is still ok?
Many thanks.
First of all, I am sorry to hear about your father. He must have been a man with great taste!
Glendronach is a favorite with scotch fans. What makes the 15 yr special is that the distillery has stopped production of the 15 year (at least for a couple of years) due to high demand and short supply.
Before you open it, it might be best to see a picture of it first. Glendronach has been around for a while, and if you don't know how long he has had it, it might be valuable if it's old enough. As far as your questions are concerned...
1) Opened bottles of whisky are good for years. As long as the cork is good, a closed bottle is good indefinitely. You'll be fine if you have two glasses a year. Once there is only a quarter of a bottle left, I would personally try to finish the bottle within the next six months or so, as the whisky oxidizes.
2) Glendronach does not chill-filter their whisky. The residue might be oils or remnants of the cask. There shouldn't be anything to worry about.
Thanks for your condolences and the info. I've added a picture of the sediment and of the whole bottle which will hopefully be clear enough for your review.
And that's why I asked for a picture; I had a hunch it might have been an older bottle. You have a special bottle on your hands, my friend!
So that particular bottling is from the 90's (I believe), which would make it more rare, especially seeing how it's a 1 liter bottle, as opposed to the traditional 70cl bottle. Here is what the current glendronach 15 bottle looks like:
If you aren't a big whisky drinker, you might want to consider keeping it closed. The bottle you have is auctioning for over $200, and its value will only go up as the years go by.
Those are some pretty large sediment deposits in the bottle...they almost look like scratches on the glass. I don't think they are pieces of cork, so I still believe it might be pieces of the cask. It should still be fine to drink, though, if you want to open the bottle.
Just to be safe, you could slowly pour the scotch through a coffee filter into the glass you plan to drink from. Seeing how the sediment has sunk to the bottom of the bottle, you probably won't have to ]do that until the bottle is almost empty.
Thanks for this info and suggestion. I now face a bit of a dilemma it seems. I think my dad would say "Whisky's for drinking. Simple." and it would be nice to use it to raise a glass in his memory twice a year but then again maybe I'll save it for a later date, check the value of it then and base my final decision accordingly.
Incidentally, are you able to point me in the direction of where one can buy & sell whiskys please?
Well... I took the decision to open it at Christmas but I was presented with a series of challenges that would have had father dearest in tears of laughter.
First off the tear strip in the foil cap-cover broke off straight away so I had to wiggle a fork prong in the tiny hole that was left and tear the foil that way. Whilst taking it off I got a glimpse of what my next challenge might be when I noticed the cork stopper move in a manner that was not conducive to it being a firm and sound fit.
Sure enough when I gripped the stopper gently and lifted with a slight twist of the wrist the top part came away whilst the rest of the cork remained resolutely in the neck of the bottle! I could tell by the colour of the cork that it had begun to perish and was no doubt very soft. So, with the precision and care of a bomb disposal expert, I placed my trusty cork screw on the bottle and gently screwed it into the cork which offered virtually no resistance. Thankfully I was able to tease the broken off cork out without any dropping into the bottle.
Phew. The old man really made me work for it (hence why I know he would have been laughing, as was his sense of humour) but it was worth it. A very warm and full of flavour dram indeed.
The kind folks of Glendronach have sent me a replacement stopper as well so no more dramas when I next open it in 2 days time for what would have been my father's birthday.
its a good idea to retain the stoppers from empties bottles in case such occasion arises, and most bottles of the same brand or series would use the same sized stoppers.
We use cookies and website technologies to customize information and improve your shopping experience all around whisky. We use technically necessary cookies to ensure the general functionality and features of our website. With your consent we also use cookies and iframes of third party providers to present our social media content to you and make use of functional tracking and analysis tools to identify errors and continually improve your user experience.
Details & Settings
Necessary cookies (always active)
Necessary cookies
The following cookies and technologies are required for the core functionalities of our website and online shops.
Necessary cookies (always active)
Name
Provider
Lifetime
Type
Name
_fe_typo_user
Provider
Whisky.com
Lifetime
Session
Type
HTTP
Description
This cookie is necessary for logging into the Whisky.com community and using the community functions.
Name
sid
Provider
Whisky.com
Lifetime
Session
Type
HTTP
Description
This cookie is necessary for the basic provision of the shop functions.
Name
sid_key
Provider
Whisky.com
Lifetime
Session
Type
HTTP
Description
This cookie is necessary for the basic provision of the shop functions.
Name
cookie_consent
Provider
Whisky.com
Lifetime
12 months
Type
HTTP
Description
This cookie is necessary to save the settings in this Consent Manager.
Name
adventcalendar_clicked
Provider
Whisky.com
Lifetime
Session
Type
HTTP
Description
This cookie is necessary for the correct display of the open doors in the Whisky.com advent calendar.
Name
language
Provider
Whisky.com
Lifetime
Session
Type
HTTP
Description
This cookie is necessary for language control on our website.
Name
BannerImpressions
Provider
Whisky.com
Lifetime
Session
Type
HTTP
Description
This cookie is necessary to limit the banner ads on our website.
Name
datamints_http2push
Provider
Whisky.com
Lifetime
Session
Type
HTTP2
Description
This cookie is necessary to improve the loading speed of our website for a better user experience.
Name
datamints_http2push_shop
Provider
Whisky.com
Lifetime
Session
Type
HTTP2
Description
This cookie is necessary to improve the loading speed of our website for a better user experience.
Name
datamints_shopselector_hasdismissednote
Provider
Whisky.com
Lifetime
Session
Type
HTTP
Description
Necessary functionality to determine whether the shop selection has already been made if the geolocation of the IP address does not match the shop country.
Name
hasUserHash
Provider
Whisky.com
Lifetime
Session
Type
HTTP
Description
Necessary functionality to determine whether a shop user exists.
Name
Vanilla
Provider
Whisky.com
Lifetime
1 Month
Type
HTTP
Description
This cookie is necessary to use the forum functions in the Whisky.com community.
Name
Vanilla-Volatile
Provider
Whisky.com
Lifetime
Session
Type
HTTP
Description
This cookie is necessary to use the forum functions in the Whisky.com community.
Name
Vanilla-Vv
Provider
Whisky.com
Lifetime
24 hours
Type
HTTP
Description
This cookie is necessary to use the forum functions in the Whisky.com community.
Name
__vnf
Provider
Whisky.com
Lifetime
13 months
Type
HTTP
Description
This cookie is necessary to use the forum functions in the Whisky.com community.
Name
preferred-country
Provider
Whisky.com
Lifetime
12 Monate
Type
HTTP
Description
This cookie is necessary to save and restore the country setting in the language and country selection.
Name
preferred-language
Provider
Whisky.com
Lifetime
12 Monate
Type
HTTP
Description
This cookie is necessary to save and restore the language setting in the language and country selection.
Functional cookies
The following cookies and technologies allow us to anonymously analyze consumer behaviour on our website to detect potential errors and continually improve the user experience.
Name
Provider
Lifetime
Type
Name
__utmz
Provider
Google, LLC
Lifetime
13 months
Type
HTTP
Description
This cookie records whether a user is redirected to our website by a search engine (and if so, which search term was used), a specific link or if he was not redirected from a previously visited page (e.g. opening the website via a bookmark).
Name
__utma
Provider
Google, LLC
Lifetime
24 months
Type
HTTP
Description
This cookie records the number of visits, timestamp of your first visit, the previous and current visit.
Name
_ga
Provider
Google, LLC
Lifetime
24 months
Type
HTTP
Description
This cookie is used by Google for user differentiation.
Name
_ga_UA******
Provider
Google, LLC
Lifetime
Session
Type
HTTP
Description
This cookie is used by Google Analytics to limit the amount of data recorded on websites with high user traffic.
Name
_gid
Provider
Google, LLC
Lifetime
24 Months
Type
HTTP
Description
This cookie is used by Google to track and store the visited page history.
Name
_gat
Provider
Google, LLC
Lifetime
10 minutes
Type
HTTP
Description
This cookie is used by Google for tracking.
Name
__gads
Provider
Google, LLC
Lifetime
30 days
Type
HTTP
Description
The __gads cookie is associated with the DoubleClick for Publishers service from Google. It serves purposes such as measuring interactions with the ads on our domain and preventing the same ads from being shown to you too many times.
Name
_gat_commercetracker
Provider
Google, LLC
Lifetime
30 Tage
Type
HTTP
Description
This cookie is used by Google Analytics to track and evaluate e-commerce applications.
Name
CONSENT
Provider
Google, LLC
Lifetime
max. 2 Jahre
Type
HTTP
Description
This cookie stores user consent information.
Name
NID
Provider
Google, LLC
Lifetime
6 Month
Type
HTTP
Description
When creating a Google account or logging in, NID cookie is stored on the computer in order to remain connected to your Google account when you visit its service again. While you are logged in and use plug-ins from other websites, such as Whisky.com, Google uses these cookies to improve your user experience.
Social Media cookies
The following cookies and technologies are required for displaying Social Media content of third party providers like YouTube, Instagram, etc.
Name
Provider
Lifetime
Type
Name
yt-remote-cast-installed
Provider
Youtube, LLC
Lifetime
Session
Type
HTML
Description
Stores user settings when accessing a Youtube video embedded on external websites.
Name
yt-remote-connected-devices
Provider
Youtube, LLC
Lifetime
Persistent
Type
HTML
Description
Stores user settings when accessing a Youtube video embedded on external websites.
Name
yt-remote-device-id
Provider
Youtube, LLC
Lifetime
Persistent
Type
HTML
Description
Stores user settings when accessing a Youtube video embedded on external websites.
Name
GPS
Provider
Youtube, LLC
Lifetime
1 Day
Type
HTTP
Description
Registers a unique ID on mobile devices to allow geographic GPS location based tracking.
Name
VISITOR_INFO1_LIVE
Provider
Youtube, LLC
Lifetime
179 Days
Type
HTTP
Description
Attempts to calculate the user's network bandwidth on pages with embedded YouTube videos.
Name
YSC
Provider
Youtube, LLC
Lifetime
Session
Type
HTTP
Description
Registers a unique ID for storing statistics on YouTube videos watched by a user.
Name
yt-remote-fast-check-period
Provider
Youtube, LLC
Lifetime
Session
Type
HTML
Description
Stores user settings when accessing a Youtube video embedded on external websites.
Name
yt-remote-session-app
Provider
Youtube, LLC
Lifetime
Session
Type
HTML
Description
Stores user settings when accessing a Youtube video embedded on external websites.
Name
yt-remote-session-name
Provider
Youtube, LLC
Lifetime
Session
Type
HTML
Description
Stores user settings when accessing a Youtube video embedded on external websites.
Name
_fbp
Provider
Facebook/Meta
Lifetime
1 Month
Type
HTML
Description
Facebook Tracking via Facebook Pixel
Name
csfrtoken
Provider
Instagram, LLC
Lifetime
1 Month
Type
HTML
Description
Are set as soon as an Instagram plugin is embedded in our website. Enables the correct functionality of these Instagram plugins, such as embedded Instagram posts. Instagram cookie information: help.instagram.com/1896641480634370.
Name
ig_cb
Provider
Instagram, LLC
Lifetime
Session
Type
HTML
Description
Are set as soon as an Instagram plugin is embedded in our website. Enables the correct functionality of these Instagram plugins, such as embedded Instagram posts. Instagram cookie information: help.instagram.com/1896641480634370.
Name
ig_did
Provider
Instagram, LLC
Lifetime
Session
Type
HTML
Description
Are set as soon as an Instagram plugin is embedded in our website. Enables the correct functionality of these Instagram plugins, such as embedded Instagram posts. Instagram cookie information: help.instagram.com/1896641480634370.
Name
mid
Provider
Instagram, LLC
Lifetime
Session
Type
HTML
Description
Are set as soon as an Instagram plugin is embedded in our website. Enables the correct functionality of these Instagram plugins, such as embedded Instagram posts. Instagram cookie information: help.instagram.com/1896641480634370.
Name
rur
Provider
Instagram, LLC
Lifetime
Session
Type
HTML
Description
Are set as soon as an Instagram plugin is embedded in our website. Enables the correct functionality of these Instagram plugins, such as embedded Instagram posts. Instagram cookie information: help.instagram.com/1896641480634370.
Name
urlgen
Provider
Instagram, LLC
Lifetime
Session
Type
HTML
Description
Are set as soon as an Instagram plugin is embedded in our website. Enables the correct functionality of these Instagram plugins, such as embedded Instagram posts. Instagram cookie information: help.instagram.com/1896641480634370.
Hi,
We've just cleared out my late father's home and found an unopened bottle of Glendronach 15yr aged whisky. I've no idea how long he had it but I have a few questions I'd like to ask you experts please:
1.) I was thinking of having this as a way of toasting my late father on his birthdays and at Xmas times. Once it is opened should it really be consumed within a set time?
2.) There is sediment or something in the bottom of the bottle which resembles bristles from a toothbrush. Do you know what those might be and whether it means the whisky is still ok?
Many thanks.
@vroom6sri
First of all, I am sorry to hear about your father. He must have been a man with great taste!
Glendronach is a favorite with scotch fans. What makes the 15 yr special is that the distillery has stopped production of the 15 year (at least for a couple of years) due to high demand and short supply.
Before you open it, it might be best to see a picture of it first. Glendronach has been around for a while, and if you don't know how long he has had it, it might be valuable if it's old enough. As far as your questions are concerned...
1) Opened bottles of whisky are good for years. As long as the cork is good, a closed bottle is good indefinitely. You'll be fine if you have two glasses a year. Once there is only a quarter of a bottle left, I would personally try to finish the bottle within the next six months or so, as the whisky oxidizes.
2) Glendronach does not chill-filter their whisky. The residue might be oils or remnants of the cask. There shouldn't be anything to worry about.
Thanks for your condolences and the info. I've added a picture of the sediment and of the whole bottle which will hopefully be clear enough for your review.
And that's why I asked for a picture; I had a hunch it might have been an older bottle. You have a special bottle on your hands, my friend!
So that particular bottling is from the 90's (I believe), which would make it more rare, especially seeing how it's a 1 liter bottle, as opposed to the traditional 70cl bottle. Here is what the current glendronach 15 bottle looks like:
If you aren't a big whisky drinker, you might want to consider keeping it closed. The bottle you have is auctioning for over $200, and its value will only go up as the years go by.
Those are some pretty large sediment deposits in the bottle...they almost look like scratches on the glass. I don't think they are pieces of cork, so I still believe it might be pieces of the cask. It should still be fine to drink, though, if you want to open the bottle.
Just to be safe, you could slowly pour the scotch through a coffee filter into the glass you plan to drink from. Seeing how the sediment has sunk to the bottom of the bottle, you probably won't have to ]do that until the bottle is almost empty.
@kroman Wow!
Thanks for this info and suggestion. I now face a bit of a dilemma it seems. I think my dad would say "Whisky's for drinking. Simple." and it would be nice to use it to raise a glass in his memory twice a year but then again maybe I'll save it for a later date, check the value of it then and base my final decision accordingly.
Incidentally, are you able to point me in the direction of where one can buy & sell whiskys please?
Well... I took the decision to open it at Christmas but I was presented with a series of challenges that would have had father dearest in tears of laughter.
First off the tear strip in the foil cap-cover broke off straight away so I had to wiggle a fork prong in the tiny hole that was left and tear the foil that way. Whilst taking it off I got a glimpse of what my next challenge might be when I noticed the cork stopper move in a manner that was not conducive to it being a firm and sound fit.
Sure enough when I gripped the stopper gently and lifted with a slight twist of the wrist the top part came away whilst the rest of the cork remained resolutely in the neck of the bottle! I could tell by the colour of the cork that it had begun to perish and was no doubt very soft. So, with the precision and care of a bomb disposal expert, I placed my trusty cork screw on the bottle and gently screwed it into the cork which offered virtually no resistance. Thankfully I was able to tease the broken off cork out without any dropping into the bottle.
Phew. The old man really made me work for it (hence why I know he would have been laughing, as was his sense of humour) but it was worth it. A very warm and full of flavour dram indeed.
The kind folks of Glendronach have sent me a replacement stopper as well so no more dramas when I next open it in 2 days time for what would have been my father's birthday.
Thanks again for your info.
@vroom6sri Congratulations on your victory lol
its a good idea to retain the stoppers from empties bottles in case such occasion arises, and most bottles of the same brand or series would use the same sized stoppers.