Dailuaine 12 Years Old 2013 Cask #327421/2013 (The Old Friends)

The bottler The Old Friends bottled this Dailuaine, a 12 year old, distilled in 2013, from cask 327421/2013, bottled at 50.8%, one of 289 bottles. Dailuaine is a Diageo Speyside distillery, its robust malt the backbone of many a blend. It passed to DCL and Scottish Malt Distillers in the 1920s and was later modernised.

It was drawn off three wash and three spirit stills, for a big, full Speyside spirit. A sherry butt held it, the wood lending raisin, fig and walnut to the robust malt. Integration folds eugenol (clove) and vanillin (vanilla) into the malt, the heavy body fuller and richer. The clean spirit shows the cask clearly, vanilla and fruit over a rich malt. A first fill sherry cask suits the robust spirit, dried fruit meeting the meaty weight. The cool Speyside air gives a slow, even maturation, the heavy malt deepening. A fire in 1917 destroyed the maltings, and the distillery was rebuilt soon after.

At 50.8%, undiluted, it is deep and fruity. A rich, full bodied sweetness, with dried fruit, fig and walnut from the cask. Soft orchard fruit and a rich malt sit behind the cask. A long, full finish carries a savoury depth. This is a rich, malty Speyside single malt.