Aultmore 11 Years Old 1985 Cask #2898 (Adelphi)

Bottled by Adelphi in 1996 as a 11 year old single cask release drawn from cask 2898 of 1985 vintage Aultmore with 622 bottles distributed to the German market at high cask strength of 61.7%. Adelphi is a Scottish independent bottler founded in 1826 and revived in 1993, now owned by Keith Falconer and Donald Houston, with releases focused on hand selected single casks at natural strength.

Distilled at the Aultmore distillery near Keith in Speyside, founded in 1896 by Alexander Edward and owned by Bacardi via John Dewar & Sons since 1998. The wash is made from unpeated plain malted barley with soft Auchinderran Burn water, mashed in a stainless steel full lauter mash tun and fermented for 56 hours in six larch wood washbacks. Aultmore runs the spirit through two wash and two spirit stills of plain pot still shape, with steam heated wash stills and shell and tube condensers giving high copper contact for a light, ester forward Speyside character. The spirit was filled into a single Oloroso sherry cask for 11 year on site maturation.

Primary ester development sat alongside European oak Oloroso sherry chemistry. Ellagitannins and gallic acid from the European oak build dried walnut and grip, while oxidative aldehydes including acetaldehyde and syringaldehyde develop nutty, leathery rancio. Fermentation derived sotolon adds dried fig and curry leaf, with concentration of glycerol lending body, integrated with Aultmore's underlying light ester signature at 61.7%.