Glendronach 42 Years Old 1971

Glendronach from the distillery, a 42 year old, from 1971, cask 1246, at 44.6%, 432 bottles in all. Glendronach is a rich Highland malt from the Valley of Forgue, near Huntly. It was bought in 2008 by Billy Walker's BenRiach company, who rebuilt it as a heavily sherried single malt. The distillery was an early champion of sherry cask maturation, its malt charming Edinburgh society from the start. It was bought in 1920 by Charles Grant, a son of the founder of Glenfiddich.

The spirit was run slowly off the spirit still, building a deep malt of dried fruit and dark sugar. Maturation came in a Pedro Ximenez sherry puncheon, layered over the full Glendronach make. Ethereal and fragile, the decades draw it to a resinous, waxy depth of dried fruit, treacle and old oak. Years in oak deepen the spirit to a darker gold, the body growing rounder and more resinous with time.

At a hearty 44.6% it carries real weight. A rich, sherried sweetness, with raisin, date and treacle from the cask. The mouthfeel is full and coating, the fruit dark and sweet. The finish runs long, full and warming. This is the sherry led malt of Forgue.