Wolfburn Shinanoya Single Cask Bottling No. 3 4 Years Old 2015

Wolfburn's Small Batch release No. 3, named for the warehouse and stow the casks came from. A 4 year old, bottled at 56.1%. Wolfburn, at Thurso on Scotland's far north coast, revived an old Caithness distilling name when it opened in 2013. The core range runs Northland, Aurora, Morven and Langskip, each named for the far north.

Distilled by hand in a single pair of copper stills on Wolf Burn water, building the fresh far north style. A sherry cask wrapped the light spirit in dried fruit and a nutty depth. At just a few years old it is bright and fresh, the young coastal spirit to the fore. The clean spirit shows the cask clearly, the wood adding much of the colour. The core range runs Northland, Aurora, Morven and Langskip, names drawn from the far north. The Kylver Series gathers single casks named for the runes of an ancient Caithness stone. Water is drawn from the Wolf Burn, the stream that runs past the distillery to the sea.

At its natural 56.1% it is concentrated. A light, citrussy fruitiness, and the Oloroso lends raisin, walnut and a dried fruit richness. A green apple and a citrus note lift it. It finishes clean, fresh and fruity. This is Wolfburn, the far north Highland malt.