Scapa 25 Years Old 1966 (G&M)

A Scapa single malt, selected and bottled by Gordon & MacPhail, a 25 year old Orkney malt from 1966 and bottled at 40%. Scapa was first built in 1885 by the sheltered waters of Scapa Flow, and it is the gentle, unpeated face of Orkney whisky. Mothballed in 1994, the distillery was revived and fully restored by Pernod Ricard in 2005.

Distilled on Lingro Burn water through its unusual Lomond still, building the gentle Orkney style it is loved for. Ex-Bourbon casks held the spirit, soft oak that lets the fruit lead. At this age it is rich and rounded, the fruit folded into a honeyed, waxy body. A long fermentation builds the orchard and tropical fruit before the cask. Scapa Flow saw the German High Seas Fleet scuttled in the summer of 1919. Scapa sits a mile from Highland Park, yet makes a wholly unpeated, honeyed malt. Its rare Lomond wash still, plates removed, gives a creamy, oily spirit through heavy copper contact.

At 40% it is supple and fruity. Honeyed vanilla and ripe fruit meet honeyed oak sweetness underneath. Soft orchard fruit and vanilla sit behind the sweetness. It closes long, honeyed and creamy. This is the gentle, unpeated face of Orkney whisky.