Cambus Batch 10 (TBWC)

That Boutique-y Whisky Company selected this Cambus, a 27 year old and bottled at 50.7%. 999 bottles in all. Cambus, a silent grain distillery on the River Devon, made whisky from about 1806 to 1993. In 1906 its grain was advertised on the front of the Daily Mail as not a headache in a gallon, during the What is Whisky debate.

Distilled continuously in two Coffey stills from a grain mash, giving a clean, mellow grain whisky. It was matured in refill ex-Bourbon oak, lending coconut and vanilla. Beyond twenty five years the grain grows deep and oily, coconut, butterscotch and crème brûlée over polished oak. Grain whisky like this rewards very long maturation, the wood adding most of the character. The light, sweet grain takes on a deep, oily richness over many years. The distillery stood near Alloa, in the old brewing and distilling country of the River Devon. With no new spirit since 1993, every bottle draws on a finite, dwindling stock.

At a hearty 50.7% it carries real weight. The ex-Bourbon gives coconut, toffee and crème brûlée. It is soft and deep, the grain and oak well matched. The finish runs buttery, soft and warm. This is the sweet, oily grain of a vanished DCL distillery.