Glenallachie Single Cask 15 Years Old 2009 (Cask 3721)

GlenAllachie from the distillery, a 15 year old, from 2009, cask 3721, at 57.9%, 302 bottles in all. GlenAllachie is a Speyside single malt known for its heavy sherry and wine cask maturation. It was mothballed in 1985 and reopened in 1989, a modern distillery by Speyside standards.

Run slowly off the spirit still, building a deep malt of dried fruit and dark sugar. It was fully matured in a Sauternes cask, the wood deep in the rich spirit. Through oxidative maturity the esters concentrate, the orchard notes turning to raisin, fig and a dark chocolate. Active first fill wood drives the maturation, the cask deep in the malt. The full bodied spirit takes active wood well, carrying its dark sugars through the years. Maturation runs slow and even in the on site dunnage warehouses at Aberlour. The wood frames the spirit without ever stripping the full Speyside body.

At a hearty 57.9% it carries real weight. A deep, dark sweetness, with honeyed apricot and a candied citrus from the cask. Fig, honey and a dark chocolate fill the middle. It finishes long, full and fruity. This is a full bodied Speyside single malt of real richness.