Imperial 28 Years Old ElD The Single Malts of Scotland (Elixir)

Founded at Carron in 1897 and demolished in 2013, Imperial produced its last spirit in 1998, leaving a finite and shrinking stock of single malt. Elixir Distillers drew this 28 years old release from Imperial stock for its The Single Malts of Scotland range. The outturn was 600 bottles, released for Europe.

Imperial worked to a fruity, lightly floral house character, the product of tall stills and a comparatively light spirit cut. This bottling matured in ex-Bourbon American oak. Across 28 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 40.8%, 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 a coal gas note, vanilla, citrus, fresh orchard fruit, malt sweetness and a cooked vegetable note. The long maturation draws tannins from the oak, drying the finish into clean wood.