Issue link: https://digital.copcomm.com/i/537687
76 / the tasting panel / july 2015 COVER STORY For his part, Bechard came up with what he has dubbed "Family History in a Glass:" a four-part Serve that not only takes the consumer on a journey through a representative selection of the Glenfiddich range, but also a meandering sensory view into the producer's history, whose founder William Grant began distilling whisky in 1887. For the first Serve, "The Seven Sons," Glenfiddich 12 is served in a Glencairn glass partially filled with frozen apple- and pear-infused mineral water, aping the notes in the flagship whisky and paying tribute to Grant's seven sons who helped build the distillery starting in 1886. Serve two brings whisky lovers to Christmas 1887, when Glenfiddich actually began distilling. To represent this, Bechard offers a palate-preparing sip of honey-infused sparkling water, followed by a dram of the sweet, rich Glenfiddich 15 in a Riedel whisky glass and finally, a bite of heady fruitcake—its flavors of dried fruit and spicy cake lingering with the similar notes in the Scotch. After that, Bechard brings you to 1963, the year that marked the launch of single malt beyond Scotland's borders and pays tribute to current Glenfiddich Malt Master Brian Kinsman, who recre- ated the original single malt expression that catapulted the Scotch whisky category to fame. Here, Bechard evokes his homeland by spraying heather-infused water into the air via an atomizer just before you sip the Glenfiddich 1963. Finally, the rich Glenfiddich 40 is presented as the finale, served in a brandy balloon with an Alec Bradley Fine and Rare cigar. While that's a pretty tough act to follow, Bechard's team—Brand Ambassadors David Allardice and Struan Ralph—were not to be outdone. For his part, Allardice worked in conjunction with boutique Dallas chocolatier Chocolate Secrets to bring out the delicious decadence of the Scotch-sipping experience—an effort that has also led to a barrel-aged Glenfiddich whisky chocolate line to be launched with Chocolate Secrets in the near future. Here, he offers pairings like the 15 Year Old with an Earl Grey–infused dark chocolate, the tea notes knitting together the complexity of both the full-bodied texture of the whisky with its more delicate notes of honey. Another in the three-spirit Serve here is the rum cask–finished 21 Year Old, whose final days are spent aging in an ex-bourbon barrel that was seasoned with rum for six months, teasing out the sweetness the cask imparts via a chocolate filled with sea-salted caramel. "I get a lot of notes of brown sugar and crème brûlée on this whisky, and the chocolate and salted caramel really accentuate the caramelized sugar notes here," says Allardice. Serving Some Inspiraon Mitch Bechard's Serve. David Allardice's Serve. Struan Ralph's Serve.