Ballechin 2010 (LMDW)

A 5 year old Ballechin from the Paris house La Maison du Whisky, distilled in 2010, from cask 311, bottled at 57.9%, one of 251 bottles. Ballechin is Edradour's heavily peated malt, smoke laid over a rich, oily Highland spirit. A 2018 expansion added a second still house, the production still small and traditional.

The spirit was drawn off the tiny stills and cooled in worm tubs, smoke over an oily spirit, for a smoky, oily make of peat and dried fruit. Ex-Bourbon casks held it, the gentle American oak letting the oily make lead. At an extractive age eugenol lends a clove note and lactones a coconut, the peat smoke fierce over the oily make. The full bodied spirit shows the cask clearly, the sherry and oak to the fore. Maturation in the dunnage warehouses at Pitlochry is slow and steady. Its water comes from the Ben Vrackie springs in the hills above the distillery.

At its natural 57.9% it is rich and full bodied. A smoky, fruity richness, with a soft vanilla from the oak. The mouthfeel is thick and oily, the smoke on a creamy body. The finish runs long, smoky and warming. This is a rich, smoky Highland single malt.