Glendronach Ode to the Dark

Glendronach from the distillery, at 50.8%. Glendronach is a deep, dark Highland malt of dried fruit, chocolate and spice. It was founded in 1826 by James Allardice, said to be the second man in Scotland to take a licence after the Excise Act of 1823. It joined William Teacher and Sons in 1960 and became a core malt of the Teacher's blend. It was the last distillery in Scotland to fire its stills with coal, converting to steam only in 2005. Its water is the Dronac Burn, which also gave the distillery its name.

Distilled to a rich, generous cut, for a weighty make built to take active Spanish oak. It was fully matured in a Pedro Ximenez cask, the wood deep in the rich spirit. Without an age statement, a dark sugar and dried fruit point to good years in cask. The wood frames the spirit without ever stripping the full Highland body. Maturation runs slow and even in the traditional dunnage warehouses on the Forgue site.

At a hearty 50.8% it carries real weight. Fig, walnut and a bittersweet chocolate, with raisin, date and treacle from the cask. A baked apple and a warm cinnamon lift the middle. It finishes long, full and fruity. This is a dark, fruity Highland single malt.