Ballechin 2013 (LMDW) (48.2%)

A 12 year old Ballechin from the Paris house La Maison du Whisky, distilled in 2013, from cask 810, bottled at 48.2%, one of 341 bottles. Ballechin is a heavily peated Highland single malt made at Edradour near Pitlochry. For years its sign read Scotland's smallest distillery; it now calls itself Scotland's little gem.

It was drawn off the tiny stills and cooled in worm tubs, smoke over an oily spirit, for a heavy, smoky spirit with an oily depth. It was matured in refill ex-Bourbon oak, a soft vanilla beneath the rich spirit. Through integration spirit and wood marry, vanillin settling into vanilla as the peat smoke softens to a mellow, oily reek. Ben Vrackie water and a long ferment give the rich Edradour make. A gentle maturation suits the oily make, the nutty richness growing with time. A small distillery and a hands on approach shape every cask by hand.

At 48.2%, undiluted, it is deep and concentrated. Woodsmoke, oily malt and a dried fruit, with a soft vanilla from the oak. Soft ash and a nutty oil sit behind the cask. The finish is rounded, smoky and gently spiced. This is a rich, smoky malt from one of Scotland's smallest distilleries.