Lovely surprise dear Ralfy ! It reminds me of the Glen Grant 5 yo here in Italy 🇮🇹 which has sadly been replaced by the General’s Reserve. But when I find it I do pick up a bottle for about 15 euros, still a tasty dram. Thanks for the history lesson of Hogmanay 😊… kindest regards, S.
this is my favorite NAS due to the story behind it. I was in 2017 at Bow fiddle rock rock in Scotland, lining up to take some Long Exposure pictures of the location. A man with An american accent approches me and ask we mind giving him the rocks and a few minutes alone, i did not saw a problem with it as i was setting up my tripod etc, then i see him get his urn out and a whisky, he walks down the path, sit on a rock he cries, he pours himself a dram and pors a bit into the sea, he comes to me and ask if i will share a dram with him and we do, we get talking. He is the President of Red Cross in Ohia USA and his father was from Aberdeen and Bow Fiddle Rock was his favorite place. He hands me the rest of the bottle and walks off, before he goes he ask for a picture of mine from the location. i sent it to him and it hangs now in his office and in other locations in Ohio. The Dram is very fruity and good for summmer but its my favorite due to the story. an that is what whisky is all about, stories to pass on.
When I started my whisky journey I drank Glenmorangie 10yo and Glen Keith Distillers Edition available from Tesco. They were both decent starter scotch whiskies. It wasn’t until I bought an Arran 10yo and Glencadam 10yo I realised there was a step up in quality and drinking enjoyment
Thanks for this review Ralfy - it's good to get a balance between the OSWA nomination malts and the more humble, supermarket offerings. So many of us are (through necessity), on a budget..... so getting a heads up on an accessible, discounted shelf option is reassuring 😀👍.
Last year, I took a chance on a bottom shelf whisky - Islay Mist 8 year old. For just $19.99 per 750 ml bottle, I was amazed what I was getting at that price. Once in a while, I would add a couple ml of Laphroaig Lore to give it a kick.
I was gifted a bottle of this a year or so ago, and I wasn't expecting much to be honest, I was pleasantly surprised, for the money it's an adequate dram.
The shop by me is currently running Highland Park 10 for £26. 40%, chill filtered, colourant added - Yes - but it's still good value and quite tasty. Also makes a great dram when mixing a spoon of Benromach CS into it.
I had a bottle of this which I bought a couple of years ago for £20, or it may have been even less. Very pleasant whisky and excellent value. It certainly wouldn't disgrace itself in a blind tasting. At 46% and NCF this would be really good. Well done for thinking 'outside the box' and reviewing this one. NB I was hoping the 1005 extras would be a Glen Keith distillery tour!
I have to agree that price can affect your enjoyment. I bought a bottle of this for my birthday last year and I was pleasantly surprised with this. I've tasted some outstanding drams in the past couple of years that enjoyment has diminished when seeing the over inflated price for what it was. £175 for a 13 year old Glengoyne for example. I have to admit, it's got to be minimum 46% non chill filtered and natural usually but this as you say for what it is is drinkable. You know what your getting
WHAT THE ... I thought you were going down with the points! But kidding aside: Isn't it great what kinds of surprises can wait for us, if we are open! Great review, Ralfy! And ... looking forward to new developments in "forgotten" distilleries!
Thanks for the heads-up Ralfy. Its on 'offer' ( or "on special" as we say here) in Australia @ $65-. Its a good price, bearing in mind we pay a shed load more taxes.
Love the review - Ralfy, the Glen Keith 21 official bottling was a top 10 so I'm super happy that this NAS delivered, so much scotch we just don't get here in the US and this brand is one of them sadly.
Hey Ralfy, bought a bottle of this Glen Keith NAS when it came out (2-3 years ago?). It was around 25 EUR then. Good entry level malt imho. Rumors say they put the occasional older cask in the mix to give it some depth. As you rightly mentioned, it does not taste like an immature 7yo but can rather compete with Fiddich and Livet 12. Good for them, good for us! 🙂
I think Ralfy has educated people so much, to demand Integrity bottles... that the big companies are now pushing out rubbish in bottles that tick all the "Tegriddy" boxes! Meanwhile, I'm finding more and more excellent blends and young whiskies...
I like Glen Keith , I can usually pick it up for £19 a bottle at my local wholesaler ,it was the brand I recommended to my friend to get him through lockdown . I've paid far more for better known brands and been very disappointed (the latest offering of Macallan 12yr double wood was a dire mistake)
I've had a few of these bottles as lo as 18.00 pound and always enjoyed them ifvu can afford to drink 50.00 pound plus whiskys as a dailey dram then good for u but i can stretch out a deanston 18 for a good few months by getting a decent cheap bottle great review
They are there if you look for them, Whisky Lock has been doing a few of late, however that 12 yr AnCnoc you revieved was a belter, mother at 87 loves the stuff so do I. the 18 is hid away for later in the year ;-)
Glen Keith has been one of my hidden gems for a while, it's a real shame I've never seen an independent bottling under 25 years old. Without chill filtration and at a higher ABV Glen Keith would be a belter
@@LethalGuy1231 I haven’t actually had the standard release as I just haven’t seen it in the country I’m in so I have no frame of reference to offer a comparison. Judged on its own it is a really good pour though I’ve only had literally one dram as I only bought it last week.
ralfy, enjoyed this review and discussion because there have been bottles I liked yet others would kind of sneer at given the name and/or price. CHEERS!
Your comments on Halloween and New Year's in Scotland were very interesting, and I wished for more. Perhaps toward the end of the year, you could go a little deeper into the customs associated with the holiday.
Hi Ralfy. I just did an entry level whisky evening with some mates. We had Glen fiddich 12, Glen Keith, and Glen Moray classic. Personally I don't think the Glen Keith is similar to Glen Fiddich 12. It seemed much more sweet than Glen fiddich which was much more noticably woody and a bit lighter. Personally I felt that the Glen Fiddich tasted a tad like Laphroaig 10 IF the Laphroaig were to be unpeated. Which I was surprised at. The Glen keith was much more sweet and toffee like. The Glen Murray was the lightest of the three, a touch more citrus and more obviously buttery than the Glen fiddich. Really fun evening. My favourite was the Glen moray, I liked the Glen fiddich 12 the least because I felt the woody notes were a bit too charred, and I didn't get enough barley coming through. Glen keith wasn't bad. Very bourbon like.
I had a Cadenhead’s Glen Keith, 13yr I think, about 12 years ago. It was decent but a bit hot I remember. Still at Cadenhead prices back then it couldn’t have been more than £40. Re new year that’s right. When my parents moved to Scotland in the 70s Christmas was not a big deal. Ironically consumerism has made it more so. The Church of Scotland didn’t simply ban Christmas though. They also didn’t observe the traditional church calendar- often it even Easter (in the groups that every Sunday is Easter). It’s not one of the best looks for Scots preybertianism. I don’t think the Dutch calvinists had quite the same approach. Anyway, it’s different now.
Even in the UK, people will buy the cheapest bottle for a holiday or a Robert Burns celebration. Then they chalk up the leftovers to the idea that whisky is terrible, harsh, bitter and smokey. When in fact the whisky they put on the table was terrible. This sounds like a game changer for the average Scottish tradition.
Hello Ralfy. Keep up your good work. Here I hace a new one i think .. MALT MENTION: Single Malt Drinking Mosketeers. If it's nota new, SORRY, theres just so many maybe I mixed one up instead of making it... Dunno Cheers to all
I've picked up two bottles of Talisker 10 for 29,99€ each. A nice standard bottle to have, which might has even improved over the years with recent batches.
This is the only single malt in my corner shop, at a regular price of £21.99. It’s a perfectly good entry level competent whisky. The distillery is literally across a stream from Strathisla, which is the customer facing distillery of Chivas. Would be interested if any independent bottler tried to give Glen Keith a shot at an integrity bottling because it’s a good distillate.
I struggle sometimes with rating well made affordable whisky that lacks complexity... I liken it to music... some pop music has great production value, but it's not bold it doesn't take risks... where does it fit in?! "For what it is..." certainly matters.
Is a 40% ABV chill filtered whisky a quality spirit? at 0.36 you said "it's about quality Spirit reviews it's about reviewing the sort of spirits that you sip ". I am a snob!
@@phillister76 yup, it was good old 40% Glenlivet 12. But in those days (1982ish) there wasn’t much single malt available -let alone anything cask strength. Had to go to bourbon for that and I’m not a huge fan. The game has changed significantly since those days.
If it's coffee or Olive oil or soda or wine, or many foods SOLD BASED on brands, WHEN the brand name is hidden FROM the taste testers THEY ALWAYS GET it wrong...... similarly where the original product has long BEEN sold to corporate owners and genetic manufactures HAVE caught up or in fact are made by the same corporation ALSO produce confusion ... certain foods yes you GET what you pay for but these are foods with simple ingredients , not a lot of ROOM to mess around and big differences in PRICE...like a can of smoked oysters for 3 dollars vs 7 dollars or tuna fish even THOUGH there's a ton of space for corpo criminal activity here as there's like 5 fishes they can call Tina and there's the locations they are harvested but a 6 dollar can will be better than a 3 dollar can..
There's value here, I also found it the other day when I bought a discounted bottle of glen Moray twisted vine, another good value dram at the £23 I paid.
@@iancrombie8862I've had some "integrity" bottles over this year that have been appalling, I have also had some absolutely luscious blends and NAS bottles at half the price. Try using your experience and taste receptors to pick whiskies, not a checklist of prejudice and snobbery.
Lovely surprise dear Ralfy ! It reminds me of the Glen Grant 5 yo here in Italy 🇮🇹 which has sadly been replaced by the General’s Reserve. But when I find it I do pick up a bottle for about 15 euros, still a tasty dram. Thanks for the history lesson of Hogmanay 😊… kindest regards, S.
this is my favorite NAS due to the story behind it. I was in 2017 at Bow fiddle rock rock in Scotland, lining up to take some Long Exposure pictures of the location. A man with An american accent approches me and ask we mind giving him the rocks and a few minutes alone, i did not saw a problem with it as i was setting up my tripod etc, then i see him get his urn out and a whisky, he walks down the path, sit on a rock he cries, he pours himself a dram and pors a bit into the sea, he comes to me and ask if i will share a dram with him and we do, we get talking. He is the President of Red Cross in Ohia USA and his father was from Aberdeen and Bow Fiddle Rock was his favorite place. He hands me the rest of the bottle and walks off, before he goes he ask for a picture of mine from the location. i sent it to him and it hangs now in his office and in other locations in Ohio. The Dram is very fruity and good for summmer but its my favorite due to the story. an that is what whisky is all about, stories to pass on.
When I started my whisky journey I drank Glenmorangie 10yo and Glen Keith Distillers Edition available from Tesco. They were both decent starter scotch whiskies. It wasn’t until I bought an Arran 10yo and Glencadam 10yo I realised there was a step up in quality and drinking enjoyment
Thanks for this review Ralfy - it's good to get a balance between the OSWA nomination malts and the more humble, supermarket offerings. So many of us are (through necessity), on a budget..... so getting a heads up on an accessible, discounted shelf option is reassuring 😀👍.
Last year, I took a chance on a bottom shelf whisky - Islay Mist 8 year old. For just $19.99 per 750 ml bottle, I was amazed what I was getting at that price. Once in a while, I would add a couple ml of Laphroaig Lore to give it a kick.
I was gifted a bottle of this a year or so ago, and I wasn't expecting much to be honest, I was pleasantly surprised, for the money it's an adequate dram.
The shop by me is currently running Highland Park 10 for £26. 40%, chill filtered, colourant added - Yes - but it's still good value and quite tasty. Also makes a great dram when mixing a spoon of Benromach CS into it.
I managed to get a HP12 for £18 a few months ago, chill filtered but still tasty stuff for not even 20 pounds
I had a bottle of this which I bought a couple of years ago for £20, or it may have been even less. Very pleasant whisky and excellent value. It certainly wouldn't disgrace itself in a blind tasting. At 46% and NCF this would be really good. Well done for thinking 'outside the box' and reviewing this one. NB I was hoping the 1005 extras would be a Glen Keith distillery tour!
I have to agree that price can affect your enjoyment. I bought a bottle of this for my birthday last year and I was pleasantly surprised with this. I've tasted some outstanding drams in the past couple of years that enjoyment has diminished when seeing the over inflated price for what it was. £175 for a 13 year old Glengoyne for example. I have to admit, it's got to be minimum 46% non chill filtered and natural usually but this as you say for what it is is drinkable. You know what your getting
WHAT THE ... I thought you were going down with the points!
But kidding aside: Isn't it great what kinds of surprises can wait for us, if we are open!
Great review, Ralfy! And ... looking forward to new developments in "forgotten" distilleries!
Thanks for the heads-up Ralfy. Its on 'offer' ( or "on special" as we say here) in Australia @ $65-. Its a good price, bearing in mind we pay a shed load more taxes.
Love the review - Ralfy, the Glen Keith 21 official bottling was a top 10 so I'm super happy that this NAS delivered, so much scotch we just don't get here in the US and this brand is one of them sadly.
Hey Ralfy, bought a bottle of this Glen Keith NAS when it came out (2-3 years ago?). It was around 25 EUR then. Good entry level malt imho. Rumors say they put the occasional older cask in the mix to give it some depth. As you rightly mentioned, it does not taste like an immature 7yo but can rather compete with Fiddich and Livet 12. Good for them, good for us! 🙂
I think Ralfy has educated people so much, to demand Integrity bottles... that the big companies are now pushing out rubbish in bottles that tick all the "Tegriddy" boxes!
Meanwhile, I'm finding more and more excellent blends and young whiskies...
I like Glen Keith , I can usually pick it up for £19 a bottle at my local wholesaler ,it was the brand I recommended to my friend to get him through lockdown . I've paid far more for better known brands and been very disappointed (the latest offering of Macallan 12yr double wood was a dire mistake)
I've had a few of these bottles as lo as 18.00 pound and always enjoyed them ifvu can afford to drink 50.00 pound plus whiskys as a dailey dram then good for u but i can stretch out a deanston 18 for a good few months by getting a decent cheap bottle great review
They are there if you look for them, Whisky Lock has been doing a few of late, however that 12 yr AnCnoc you revieved was a belter, mother at 87 loves the stuff so do I. the 18 is hid away for later in the year ;-)
My Scotch Whisky of the year 2024 is Loch Loman 12, for the simple reason it’s everywhere for everyone to enjoy!
And it tastes GREAT!! CHEERS!
I recently visited a friend on the Isle of Man and he pulled out a bottle of Glen Keith which we opened and enjoyed, a very pleasant dram
Glen Keith has been one of my hidden gems for a while, it's a real shame I've never seen an independent bottling under 25 years old. Without chill filtration and at a higher ABV Glen Keith would be a belter
Spot on, at the knockdown price it's the kind of thing you note as worth keepin an eye out for a more grownup version.
Just bought a Berry Bros 28yr CS for 200quid. They are out there they’re just difficult to find.
@@hoodwiser7652 interesting, how is it? can you tell it's from the same distillery as the standard release?
@@LethalGuy1231 I haven’t actually had the standard release as I just haven’t seen it in the country I’m in so I have no frame of reference to offer a comparison. Judged on its own it is a really good pour though I’ve only had literally one dram as I only bought it last week.
ralfy, enjoyed this review and discussion because there have been bottles I liked yet others would kind of sneer at given the name and/or price. CHEERS!
I'm not sure what it goes for nowadays, but maybe 10 years ago, Tomatin 12 was a great bargain whisky that could be had $20 occasionally.
Nice review and even nicer history lesson ! More of the history aspect if you find it fitting ! Its lovley to hear history from a local !
I enjoyed this one. Thanks Ralfy, nice with a pale ale and more £ in the bank. Sometimes we just got to appreciate what our budget can afford
For a good rant you could have gone for Glenfairn and gone to town like Andy did on Malt Box 😂 Thoughtful as ever, thanks Ralfy.
Your comments on Halloween and New Year's in Scotland were very interesting, and I wished for more. Perhaps toward the end of the year, you could go a little deeper into the customs associated with the holiday.
Got a 9yo Glen Kieth by Carn Mor, PX Hoghshead, 47, 5 %. It's a rallye nice bottle 😊
Hi Ralfy. I just did an entry level whisky evening with some mates. We had Glen fiddich 12, Glen Keith, and Glen Moray classic. Personally I don't think the Glen Keith is similar to Glen Fiddich 12. It seemed much more sweet than Glen fiddich which was much more noticably woody and a bit lighter. Personally I felt that the Glen Fiddich tasted a tad like Laphroaig 10 IF the Laphroaig were to be unpeated. Which I was surprised at. The Glen keith was much more sweet and toffee like. The Glen Murray was the lightest of the three, a touch more citrus and more obviously buttery than the Glen fiddich. Really fun evening. My favourite was the Glen moray, I liked the Glen fiddich 12 the least because I felt the woody notes were a bit too charred, and I didn't get enough barley coming through. Glen keith wasn't bad. Very bourbon like.
Just got bottle of 10 year glenkeith at auction 43% looking forward to opening it now
I had a Cadenhead’s Glen Keith, 13yr I think, about 12 years ago. It was decent but a bit hot I remember. Still at Cadenhead prices back then it couldn’t have been more than £40. Re new year that’s right. When my parents moved to Scotland in the 70s Christmas was not a big deal. Ironically consumerism has made it more so. The Church of Scotland didn’t simply ban Christmas though. They also didn’t observe the traditional church calendar- often it even Easter (in the groups that every Sunday is Easter). It’s not one of the best looks for Scots preybertianism. I don’t think the Dutch calvinists had quite the same approach. Anyway, it’s different now.
This is the HIGHEST neck full
I have ever seen on a bottle being reviewed by Ralfy lol!
Even in the UK, people will buy the cheapest bottle for a holiday or a Robert Burns celebration.
Then they chalk up the leftovers to the idea that whisky is terrible, harsh, bitter and smokey.
When in fact the whisky they put on the table was terrible.
This sounds like a game changer for the average Scottish tradition.
Malty Masters of Mindful Moderation
. . . now on the M-mention List, thanks !
"A spoon full of Ardbeg makes the whisky go down. The whisky go down. "
Hello Ralfy. Keep up your good work.
Here I hace a new one i think ..
MALT MENTION: Single Malt Drinking Mosketeers.
If it's nota new, SORRY, theres just so many maybe I mixed one up instead of making it... Dunno
Cheers to all
. . . needs to be mostly 'M' words !
I've picked up two bottles of Talisker 10 for 29,99€ each. A nice standard bottle to have, which might has even improved over the years with recent batches.
We don’t get this whisky in America. Thank you for reviewing anyways!
This is the only single malt in my corner shop, at a regular price of £21.99. It’s a perfectly good entry level competent whisky. The distillery is literally across a stream from Strathisla, which is the customer facing distillery of Chivas. Would be interested if any independent bottler tried to give Glen Keith a shot at an integrity bottling because it’s a good distillate.
Keith Moon, Keith Richards & Glen Keith
😁🤘🥂
I've seen this in the co op and always steered clear knowing nothing about it and being 40% , but living in Glasgow i doubt it'll be £21.
I struggle sometimes with rating well made affordable whisky that lacks complexity... I liken it to music... some pop music has great production value, but it's not bold it doesn't take risks... where does it fit in?!
"For what it is..." certainly matters.
Malt Mashers in the Malt-o-verse
. . . now on the M-mention List, thanks !
You could pump it up nicely with your old bottle of paxarette 😅😊
Just loved this review!
No like you to be lost for words Ralfy
Johnnie Walker Black label is often poppin up around £20 - 23!
Amazing blend.
Is a 40% ABV chill filtered whisky a quality spirit? at 0.36 you said "it's about quality Spirit reviews it's about reviewing the sort of spirits that you sip ". I am a snob!
Ralfy has reviewed cheap blends in the past. There are plenty of 'quality spirit' reviews on the channel. Something for everyone.
@@Robhalifax Ralfy should not say that his channel is only about quality spirits He can review whatever he wants!!
It's always worth taking a punt on these special offers. At best you can find a hidden gem. At worst a new filler for your infinity bottle.
what a great xmas surprise :)
I'm surprised you even bothered with this one, but I`ll give it its due: it ticks at least three of the right boxes.
how about a knockando single malt review? i think the only way we get a taste in the states is in J and B. thanks.
The Coop were doing a deal on this during lockdown GBP20, at that price it was good but at full retail there is better competition available.
40%. No thanks. Minimum for OBs should be 46%
@cato451, fair enough but what was the first whisky you enjoyed?
@@phillister76 yup, it was good old 40% Glenlivet 12. But in those days (1982ish) there wasn’t much single malt available -let alone anything cask strength. Had to go to bourbon for that and I’m not a huge fan. The game has changed significantly since those days.
Add a teaspoon of salt, it will raise the ABV😊
Edradour is 40% and still a banger. Although, it would be twice as good if was bottled at 46%+, NCF, NC
🙄 Loch Lomond 12 would definitely be better for the same price
But you won't get LL12 for £21.
In Texas USA is $39 out the door price. Not much more than 21 pounds
If it's coffee or Olive oil or soda or wine, or many foods SOLD BASED on brands, WHEN the brand name is hidden FROM the taste testers THEY ALWAYS GET it wrong...... similarly where the original product has long BEEN sold to corporate owners and genetic manufactures HAVE caught up or in fact are made by the same corporation ALSO produce confusion ... certain foods yes you GET what you pay for but these are foods with simple ingredients , not a lot of ROOM to mess around and big differences in PRICE...like a can of smoked oysters for 3 dollars vs 7 dollars or tuna fish even THOUGH there's a ton of space for corpo criminal activity here as there's like 5 fishes they can call Tina and there's the locations they are harvested but a 6 dollar can will be better than a 3 dollar can..
This GK was complete pants.
Why are you reviewing this?,Hit hard times?🙄
Because not everyone who watches this channel has a high disposable income perhaps, and are on the lookout for a bit of a bargain before Christmas?
@@puressenceuk35 40% abv..colour added...chill filtered...No Way....
There's value here, I also found it the other day when I bought a discounted bottle of glen Moray twisted vine, another good value dram at the £23 I paid.
@@iancrombie8862I've had some "integrity" bottles over this year that have been appalling, I have also had some absolutely luscious blends and NAS bottles at half the price.
Try using your experience and taste receptors to pick whiskies, not a checklist of prejudice and snobbery.
@watson946 I'm waiting for the Glen Moray Sherry cask to hit the 20 quid mark,. it is the only one that hasn't been discounted yet.