Craigellachie 12 Years Old 2009 Cask #8 (Meadowside Blending)

This Craigellachie was bottled by the bottler Meadowside Blending, a 12 year old, distilled in 2009, from cask 8, bottled at 52.5%, one of 294 bottles. Craigellachie is the bold, oily Speyside malt that anchors the White Horse blend. Water comes from a local spring in the Blue Hill area above the village.

Distilled for the heavy, meaty spirit Craigellachie is known for, for a bold, meaty Speyside spirit. First fill bourbon gave a fuller vanilla and pineapple over the robust spirit. Integration folds eugenol (clove) and vanillin (vanilla) into the malt, the robust body turning fruitier. Most Craigellachie goes quietly into blends, a robust filler kept in part as single malt. Most of its make still goes to blending, a robust filler prized for its weight. The oily spirit shows the cask clearly, vanilla and tropical fruit over a meaty malt. Years in oak round the spirit, the worm tub weight turning to pineapple and wax.

Bottled at a cask strength 52.5%, it is rich. Pineapple, malt and a savoury edge, with a soft vanilla from the oak. It is robust and waxy, the muscular spirit shining through. It finishes robust, waxy and warm. This is the muscular, meaty Speyside malt of Craigellachie.