Craigellachie 13 Years Old 2008 Cask #7535389 (Duncan Taylor)

From the Huntly bottler Duncan Taylor, a 13 year old Craigellachie, distilled in 2008, from cask 7535389, bottled at 53.9%, one of 90 bottles. Craigellachie is a robust, oily Speyside single malt made on worm tub condensers. The official range runs a thirteen, seventeen and twenty three year old, with rare older bottlings.

It was run through the distillery's stills and old fashioned worm tubs, to build a robust, sulphurous, full bodied character. First fill bourbon gave a fuller vanilla and pineapple over the robust spirit. Integration folds eugenol (clove) and vanillin (vanilla) into the malt, the robust body turning fruitier. The oily spirit shows the cask clearly, vanilla and tropical fruit over a meaty malt. It was launched as a single malt brand in 2014, with a bare knuckle, old fashioned image. Years in oak round the spirit, the worm tub weight turning to pineapple and wax.

At a hearty 53.9% it carries real weight. Mango, wax and a meaty depth, with a soft vanilla from the oak. A baked fruit and a warm spice lift it. A robust, malty finish ends on tropical fruit and a warm spice. This is Craigellachie's robust, oily Speyside style.