Imperial 27 Years Old 1997 Whiskyland Chapter Twenty Seven (Decadent Drinks)

Imperial spent most of its life supplying blends and rarely appeared as a single malt; since its 1998 closure and 2013 demolition, what survives is almost entirely independent bottlings. Decadent Drinks drew this 27 years old release from 1997 spirit for its Whiskyland - Chapter Twenty Seven range. The outturn was 155 bottles, released for Europe.

The distillery's large stills gave a clean spirit rich in esters, floral and faintly waxy, typical of Speyside before its closure. This bottling matured in ex-Bourbon American oak. Across 27 years, the toasted staves released vanillin, which reads as vanilla, and oak lactones, which carry coconut, while the cask char filtered heavier sulphur notes from the spirit.

Bottled at its natural cask strength of 49.5%, without dilution, the ex-Bourbon wood supplies furfural for toasted almond, eugenol for clove and warm spice, and maltol for a soft toffee sweetness. Recorded bottle notes run to citrus. The long maturation draws tannins from the oak, drying the finish into clean wood.