Allt-a-Bhainne 18 Years Old 1992 Cask #21 (Morrison and MacKay)

Distilled in 1992 and bottled by Morrison and MacKay in 2010 from single ex Bourbon cask #21 under the Càrn Mòr Celebration of the Cask imprint, this is an 18 Years Old Allt-a-Bhainne at 57% ABV. The release is one of 278 bottles. Morrison and MacKay is a Perth based independent bottler running the Càrn Mòr label, focused on single cask releases at natural strength.

Allt-a-Bhainne ferments malted barley for 48 to 50 hours on Mauri liquid yeast in closed stainless steel washbacks, then double distills through two copper wash stills and two copper spirit stills with steam heating and shell and tube condensers. The short Speyside ferment produces a clean malt forward spirit built as a blend filler for Chivas Regal, Passport and 100 Pipers. New make is reduced with Rowantree Burn water and tankered to Keith for cask filling and maturation, since the distillery holds no warehousing on site.

Ex Bourbon American oak frames cask contribution on vanillin and oak lactones from the toasted and charred staves, with Maillard chemistry from hemicellulose oak sugars driving honey and vanilla. The clean American oak palette suits Allt-a-Bhainne's lighter blend filler spirit. Eighteen years of ex Bourbon cask interaction develops the vanillin and oak lactone contribution into a settled mature phase, with Maillard reaction products from extended oak sugar contact joining the primary extract.