Glen Keith 1995/2013 Part Des Anges 17 year old Single Speyside Malt Whisky 55,5%

The series is called Closed Distilleries, and when the cask was selected in 2013 the name fitted precisely. Glen Keith had stood still since 1999, and a French bottling house got hold of a bourbon cask from 1995. It yielded 175 bottles.

The expert's description

Glen Keith 1995/2013 Part des Anges 17 Year Old is a Speyside Single Malt Scotch Whisky matured in a bourbon cask and bottled at cask strength 55.5%.

The cask was filled in 1995 and emptied in 2013 after 17 years. The bottling gave 175 bottles, non-chill filtered and with no added colour, and the whisky formed part of the Closed Distilleries series — Part des Anges' selection of whisky from distilleries that were silent or shut. The irony is that Glen Keith was started up again in 2013, the very year the bottle appeared.

Part des Anges is a French bottling house founded in 2005 by Thierry Richard and Laurent Buob. They have specialised in whisky from distilleries without a future, which has produced a set of bottles that now works rather like an archive of a period when Scotch whisky was shutting down instead of building.

Tasting notes

Nose

Concentrated and bright. Pineapple, yellow melon and vanilla pod, with a sharp orange peel on top. A cask that has had plenty of time without taking over.

Palate

Powerful and oily without being heavy. Tropical fruit, coconut and honey, with a firm peppery middle from the 55.5%. The malt sits clearly beneath it all.

Finish

Very long. Vanilla, pineapple and white pepper drying slowly into a note of pale oak.

Specifications

Name: Glen Keith 1995/2013 Part des Anges 17 Year Old Speyside Single Malt Whisky 55.5%
Distillery: Glen Keith
Bottler: Part des Anges
Region/Country: Speyside, Scotland
Type: Speyside Single Malt Scotch Whisky
Age: 17 years
ABV: 55.5%
Size: 70 CL
Cask type: Bourbon cask
Non-chill filtered: Yes
Natural colour: Yes
Distilled: 1995
Bottled: 2013
Number of bottles: 175
Edition: Closed Distilleries

Flavour profile

Tropical · Fruity · Vanilla-sweet · Spiced · Cask Strength

Investment potential

High. 175 bottles from a single cask, a 17 year old from a distillery that sat silent for fourteen years, and a series that collects nothing but closed addresses. All three pull in the same direction, and Part des Anges bottlings are rarely seen in ordinary trade.

Did you know?

During the fourteen years Glen Keith stood silent, parts were stripped from the plant to keep other distilleries running. When the decision came to reopen, there was not much left to start from — the new distillery was in practice built inside the old walls.

See our full range of Glen Keith

Frequently asked questions about Glen Keith 1995/2013 Part des Anges 17 Year Old

Is it worth the money?

Rarity is the argument. 175 bottles from one bourbon cask, 17 years in wood, cask strength and a distillery that was closed when the whisky was bottled. The Closed Distilleries series is also a niche project from a small French bottler, so the bottle is not easy to find again.

Why is Glen Keith called a closed distillery when it runs today?

Because it stood silent from 1999 to 2013. When Part des Anges chose the cask and put the label on, the distillery was shut. The reopening happened in the same year as the bottling, so the bottle catches the exact moment the status changed.

How does 17 year old Glen Keith from a bourbon cask taste?

Bright and tropical. Bourbon casks without any sherry involvement let the distillery fruitiness come forward, and 17 years is enough to gather it without the wood dominating. At 55.5% the concentration is noticeably higher than in an ordinary bottling.

Should you add water at 55.5%?

Taste it neat first — there is a lot of fruit to be had without water. A few drops can open the pineapple notes further, but move slowly, because the whisky loses its oily texture quickly.

Who are Part des Anges?

A French bottling house founded in 2005 by Thierry Richard and Laurent Buob. They buy individual casks and have made closed distilleries their speciality, which sets them apart from the larger Scottish bottlers. See the other Scottish bottlings in our Scotch Whisky selection.

What does Part des Anges mean?

It is the French term for the share of the whisky that evaporates out through the cask during maturation. In English it is called the angels' share, and in a Scottish warehouse a couple of per cent disappears each year.

Should the bottle be opened or kept?

It is a real trade-off. Open it and you get a whisky that will not come again in the same form. Keep it and you hold a documented bottle from a closed period. Unopened it will last for decades if stored upright, cool and dark.