For true Scotch whisky lovers, the Glenfarclas is a gold standard, little known because of its rarity as being one of the few distilleries that’s privately owned by a Scottish family, the Grants, for six generations.

The distinction of this rich and mouth filling dram is its adherence to traditional maturation for the Speyside area: 100% ex-Oloroso sherry barrels. They are only one of a small handful of distilleries that haven’t given over to the less expensive but more ubiquitous ex-bourbon barrels that make up almost 95% of all aging Scotch whisky stocks.