Glenfiddich family new range blends

Grant’s blended Scotch whisky range is undergoing a major overhaul, including the renaming of its’ flagship blend and the introduction of three new expressions. Like so many other established names/brands, is this a good idea or is it jumping on the bandwagon? From this month, the core expression Grant’s Family Reserve is renamed Grant’s Triple Wood – the blend is the same – and three new whiskies are added to the range: Grant’s Triple Wood Smoky; Grant’s Rum Cask Finish (check it out Liz) and Grant’s 8 Year Old Sherry Cask Finish – mine. Grant’s Signature, Grant’s Sherry Cask Finish and Grant’s Ale Cask Finish will be discontinued, so if you have any, keep em unopened – so will the locally available Grant’s Master Blender’s Edition and Grant’s Nordic Oak Finish.

The idea behind the move is to have a more consistent and focused Grant’s range available around the world, they say, while the renaming of Family Reserve aims to highlight the three types of cask that are fundamental to the blend: refill American oak, first-fill ex-Bourbon and virgin American oak. Complicated? Hard to figure? Read on … Grant’s blended whiskies range  is the third best-selling Scotch whisky in the world in volume terms – behind Johnnie Walker and Ballantine’s, having recently overtaken Chivas Regal – selling roughly 4.5m nine-litre cases a year.

The new range in more detail: Grant’s Triple Wood: matured in refill American oak, first-fill ex-Bourbon and virgin American oak casks; 40% abv; UK recommended selling price (RSP) £15. Grant’s Triple Wood Smoky: matured as Triple Wood, with a higher proportion of peated whisky in the blend; 40% abv; UK RSP £19. Grant’s Rum Cask Finish: matured in American oak, plus four months in ex-rum casks; 40% abv; UK RSP £19. Grant’s 8 Year Old Sherry Cask Finish: matured in American oak and a refill Sherry, plus 4-6 months in European oak Oloroso Sherry butt; 40% abv; UK RSP £21

The range will also feature in a new global communications campaign highlighting the collective effort behind the making of the blends, with Grant’s claiming that ‘198 pairs of hands’ are involved from grain to glass. Ok now we are confused totally. So, it’s worth shelling out the miserably low amounts to find out your favourite (Rum Liz?).