Caperdonich 20 Years Old 1992 Cask #46215 (Duncan Taylor)

The Huntly bottler Duncan Taylor selected this Caperdonich, a 20 year old, distilled in 1992, from cask 46215, bottled at 54.7%, one of 282 bottles. Caperdonich was built in 1898 as Glen Grant No.2, the sister distillery across the road from Glen Grant. Its character was close to Glen Grant but its own, less green apple, more cream, pear and mint.

It was distilled from unpeated malt in tall Glen Grant style stills, for a soft, fruity, oily make. First fill bourbon gave it a fuller vanilla and a touch of coconut. Into oxidative maturity, slow air ingress builds fruity ethyl esters (pear and pineapple) and a waxiness. Ethyl esters built over the years lend the pear and tropical fruit of old Caperdonich. A pipeline known as the whisky pipe once carried its spirit across the road to Glen Grant. It closed in 1902 after the Pattison crash, lying silent for over sixty years. With Caperdonich demolished, every bottle draws on a finite, dwindling stock.

Undiluted at 54.7%, it is layered. A waxy, pear scented fruitiness, with a soft vanilla from the oak. The texture is oily and waxy, the fruit lifted by vanilla. The close is long, fruit over a gentle oak. This is a rare Speyside single malt from a demolished distillery.