Caperdonich 39 Years Old 1977 Cadenhead’s 175th Anniversary (Cadenhead’s)

This Caperdonich was bottled by Scotland's oldest independent bottler Cadenhead's, a 39 year old, distilled in 1977, bottled at 50.4%, one of 462 bottles. Caperdonich made a light, fruity Speyside malt at Rothes until its closure in 2002. Seagram bought it in 1977, and Pernod Ricard closed it in 2002.

Worked through the distillery's four tall stills, to build a clean, waxy, fruity character. First fill bourbon gave it a fuller vanilla and a touch of coconut. At an ethereal, fragile age the spirit turns delicate, sotolon lending maple and old oak as beeswax lingers. 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. Its character was close to Glen Grant but its own, less green apple, more cream, pear and mint. After closure the site was sold to the coppersmith Forsyths, who demolished it in 2011. Closed in 2002 and later demolished, its profile is fixed for good.

Undiluted at 50.4%, it is layered. A waxy, pear scented fruitiness, with a soft vanilla from the oak. A baked pear and a soft spice lift it. It finishes creamy, fruity and waxy. This is Caperdonich, the lost twin of Glen Grant.