New Arrival: Glenfiddich Cask of Dreams 2012

Scottish Whisky is a worldwide phenomenon and in great demand yet its great to reverse the trend and repatriate a foreign exclusive. A trend beyond exclusive travel retail is to release specifically targeted releases for certain markets. Highland Park do a grand job of tapping into their Viking heritage with releases for Scandinavian markets such as the Hjarta, or further afield with The Sword, an exclusive Taiwan bottling. 

Glenfiddich historically were one of the first distilleries to tap into the worldwide market and export beyond the confines of the United Kingdom. The Cask of Dreams starts with a simple idea and that is the cask itself that brings as much as 60% of the flavour (according to Glenmorangie) to the dram. These casks once their distillery days are over, live on in gardens or as bespoke furniture or items in households, such as my own. However these Glenfiddich casks were rolled around cities throughout Canada (there is an American equivalent as well), where individuals could decorate the cask with their own dreams.

This is a limited release and I'm impressed by the packaging that is not only impressive but also (for a change) practical. A solid tin exterior unscrews revealing the bottle which sits firmly on the base. The whole concept ties in well with the cask and the impressive nature of the dram which is at least 14 years old. You know when Glenfiddich release a No Age Statement whisky it tends to be of higher quality than other NAS releases from other distilleries. This is no mere fire water dram and is as enjoyable as Glenfiddich Snow Phoenix from a couple years ago. In the bottle there does tend to be some good whisky of varying ages that comes together for a historic blend. Yes, technically this isn't a pure NAS, however there is still some mystery behind the barrel.