William Grant founded his distillery at Dufftown in 1887, having spent twenty years as a manager at Mortlach. The family firm still owns Glenfiddich, Balvenie and Kininvie, and Grant's — the blend — has been the company's bread-and-butter brand since the late nineteenth century. The triangular bottle, introduced in 1957, remains one of the more recognisable shapes on any back bar.
Triple Wood, launched as the entry-level expression in 2016 when it replaced the long-running Family Reserve, takes its name from maturation across three cask types: refill American oak, virgin oak, and former bourbon casks. No age is declared, and it is bottled at the standard 40%.
On the nose it is soft and cereal-sweet, with vanilla and pear drop. The palate runs to toffee and vanilla, a thin green-apple note and the light bourbon character you'd expect from the wood policy. The finish is short and unchallenging. This is not whisky that rewards contemplation; it rewards pouring.
At around £18 it sits firmly in supermarket territory, and that is where it belongs. As a mixer for a highball, or as a pragmatic everyday blend, it does the job without fuss. The Grant family have been making whisky for five generations, and Triple Wood is proof that the workaday end of the range still carries a recognisable thread of malt character — Glenfiddich and Balvenie are, after all, in the mix somewhere.
