Est. 1887 • Dufftown, Speyside, Scotland

Glenfiddich

"Valley of the Deer"

Glenfiddich is a Speyside single malt built by William Grant in Dufftown and first run on Christmas Day 1887. It is still owned by the Grant family, and it is the world's best-selling single malt. The house style is fresh and fruit-led: think pear, green apple and a light floral note over a clean, gently oaked body. The name is Gaelic for valley of the deer, which is why a stag marks the range.

1887

Founded

Speyside

Region

Dufftown

Home

Orchard fruit

House Style

The Family Malt of Speyside

Where Glenfiddich sits in the Speyside picture

William Grant built Glenfiddich by hand in Dufftown, in the heart of Speyside, and ran its first spirit on Christmas Day 1887. Five generations later it is still owned by the Grant family, which is rare among the big names. In the 1960s and 1970s it did as much as any distillery to turn single malt from a blender's ingredient into a category people drink by name.

As a single malt, Glenfiddich is Speyside in its fresh, fruit-led register. There is no peat smoke here. The signature is orchard fruit, pear above all, with green apple, vanilla and a light floral lift over a clean, gently oaked body. That freshness is why the 12 Year Old drinks so easily, and the sherry and rum-cask influence on the older bottlings builds depth without losing it.

To place Glenfiddich among its neighbours, read our guide to the whisky regions of Scotland and browse the wider Scotch whisky catalogue.

The Age Ladder

How the core Glenfiddich bottlings sit against each other, everyday to special occasion

The everyday Speyside

Glenfiddich 12 Year Old

The house style at its most familiar and the malt that made single malt mainstream. Fresh pear and green apple over vanilla and a whisper of oak. Light, clean and easy, the bottle to start with.

The Solera step up

Glenfiddich 15 Year Old

Married in a Solera vat that is never emptied, so the character stays consistent and deep. Warmer and rounder than the 12, with honey, baked apple, marzipan and a spiced, sherried edge.

The mature middle

Glenfiddich 18 Year Old

Small-batch and richer again. Baked orchard fruit, dried peel and cinnamon over a fuller oak. More weight and length, still recognisably the fresh Glenfiddich core underneath.

The special-occasion Glenfiddich

Glenfiddich 21 Year Old and older

The 21 Year Old, finished in Caribbean rum casks, and the rarer aged bottlings above it. Toffee, banana, dark sugar and warm spice, long and layered. Scarce, and priced for the occasion.

How to Drink It

Glenfiddich is an easy place to start with single malt. Pour the 12 Year Old neat or with a few drops of water and let the pear and apple open up. Its freshness also makes a clean Highball, long over ice with soda and a twist of lemon, and it carries a whisky sour well. Keep the 18 and the 21 for sipping slowly, no mixer needed.