Craigellachie 10 Years Old 2012 Cask #901031 (A.D. Rattray)

A.D. Rattray bottled this Craigellachie, a 10 year old, distilled in 2012, from cask 901031, bottled at 65%, one of 552 bottles. Craigellachie, where the Fiddich meets the Spey, is the meaty backbone of the White Horse blend. Water comes from a local spring in the Blue Hill area above the village.

The spirit was drawn off pot stills cooled by traditional worm tubs, to build a robust, sulphurous, full bodied character. A sherry cask wrapped the muscular spirit in dried fruit and a nutty depth. Through integration spirit and wood marry, vanillin settling into vanilla as ethyl esters lend a riper, tropical fruit over the meaty malt. The heavy, oily make is prized by blenders for the backbone it gives White Horse. Worm tubs give little copper contact, so the new spirit is robust and full, mellowing to tropical fruit with age. It was launched as a single malt brand in 2014, with a bare knuckle, old fashioned image.

Bottled at a cask strength 65%, it is rich. Tropical fruit, malt and a warm spice, with dried fruit, fig and walnut from the cask. The texture is full and oily, the fruit lifted by a meaty weight. The finish is deep, oily and savoury. This is an oily, tropical Speyside single malt.