Aberfeldy Batch 2 (TBWC)

An Aberfeldy 21 year old bottled by That Boutique y Whisky Company (TBWC) as Batch 2 in the firm's sequentially numbered Aberfeldy releases. 261 bottles in the 500ml format, presented in the firm's signature cartoon labels. TBWC was launched in 2012 by Atom Group (the same company behind Master of Malt) as a small batch indie series with the distinctive smaller bottle format and cartoon presentation now established as the line's identifying marks.

Long fermentation Aberfeldy spirit from the four still post expansion configuration, distilled in the late 1990s and matured 21 years in ex Bourbon American oak. Vatted from selected casks for the TBWC Batch 2 release and bottled at 48.9% with reduced chill filtering and no caramel adjustment, sitting at near cask strength given the long maturation period.

Twenty one years in refill American oak builds a fully developed oak signature: vanillin from lignin breakdown sits at upper concentration, cis whisky lactones contribute clearly framed coconut and dill, and furfural plus 5 hydroxymethylfurfural from hemicellulose breakdown supply developed caramel and pastry notes. Aberfeldy's distillate signature carries through more than two decades of slow oxidation: medium chain ethyl esters (ethyl laurate, ethyl myristate) and heavier fusel alcohols drive the heather honey core, with acetal compounds and polymerised polyphenols layering soft leather and tobacco notes from the long maturation.