Craigellachie 14 Years Old 2006 Cask #HL 18207 (Edition Spirits)

From Edition Spirits, a 14 year old Craigellachie, distilled in 2006, from cask HL 18207, bottled at 53%, one of 290 bottles. Craigellachie, where the Fiddich meets the Spey, is the meaty backbone of the White Horse blend. Worm tubs give little copper contact, so the new spirit is robust and full, mellowing to tropical fruit with age.

The spirit was run through the distillery's stills and old fashioned worm tubs, building the old fashioned Craigellachie style. Ex-Sherry wood added a dried fruit richness to the heavy, meaty malt. By the integrating teens the sulphur fades and esters build, pineapple and wax growing over the oily spirit. Years in oak round the spirit, the worm tub weight turning to pineapple and wax. The cool Speyside air gives a slow, even maturation, the young sulphur fading to fruit. With age the meaty young spirit turns to pineapple, mango and a waxy depth.

At a natural 53% it is full and honeyed. Tropical fruit, malt and a warm spice, with dried fruit, fig and walnut from the cask. Soft tropical fruit and a waxy malt sit behind the cask. A long, oily finish carries a tropical depth. This is Craigellachie, the meaty heart of White Horse.