Strathclyde 27 Years Old 1987 Cask #DL 10804 (Old Particular)

Bottled by Douglas Laing, this Strathclyde, a 27 year old release from 1987, drawn from cask DL 10804 and bottled at 51.5%. Only 198 bottles were released. Set on an old cotton mill site in Glasgow, Strathclyde has made grain whisky since 1927. Built first for neutral grain spirit for gin, it entered whisky with the Long John brand in 1936.

The spirit was run through column stills, an analyser and a rectifier, on Loch Katrine water, to build a soft, sweet grain character. Maturation came in ex-Bourbon wood, with vanilla and crème brûlée. Long ageing brings a deep coconut, toffee and a mellow, polished oak. Patient ageing gives the oily, waxy texture prized in old single grain. Strathclyde is the only grain distillery in Glasgow, once one of Scotland's whisky cities. It was built by the gin distiller Seager Evans in 1927 on the site of an old cotton mill. Its grain whisky has long fed blends like Long John, Ballantine's and Chivas Regal.

Bottled at a cask strength 51.5%, it is rich. The ex-Bourbon gives a sweet, oily vanilla. It is clean and sweet, the grain spirit shining through. The close is soft, dessert sweet over oak. This is a single grain from Glasgow's only grain distillery.