Edradour Vintage – Barolo Cask Finish 21 Years Old 1999 (54.8%)

An official release of Edradour, a 21 year old, from 1999, cask 828 + 829, at 54.8%, 580 bottles in all. Edradour is a creamy, sherried Highland single malt from one of the smallest distilleries in Scotland. The distillery sits in a pocket glen at Balnauld, in the hills above Pitlochry in Perthshire.

Run through the small stills with their boil ball purifiers, for a full, oily make of dried fruit and chocolate. Maturation came in a Barolo cask, layered over the rich Edradour make. Through oxidative maturity esters concentrate, the dried fruit and chocolate turning rich over the waxy body. Years in oak round the spirit, the dried fruit and chocolate deepening over the oily core. It was founded in 1825, growing out of an old farmers' cooperative in the glen above Pitlochry. Under Signatory the range has grown to a wide run of sherry and wine cask bottlings.

At cask strength 54.8% it is big and oily. Dried fruit, nut and a soft chocolate, with a dry, cherry and tannic edge from the cask. Soft chocolate and a nutty oil sit behind the cask. The close is oily and warming, fruit over a gentle oak. This is a Highland single malt of real character.