Dailuaine 12 Years Old 2009 Cask #10929646 (Duncan Taylor)

This Dailuaine was bottled by the Huntly bottler Duncan Taylor, a 12 year old, distilled in 2009, from cask 10929646, bottled at 53.1%, one of 73 bottles. Dailuaine, whose name is Gaelic for the green vale, is a heavy, full bodied Speysider. It sits near Aberlour, in the heart of Speyside by the River Spey.

Distilled in large conical necked stills on Bailliemullich Burn water, for the rich, full bodied make Dailuaine is known for. First fill bourbon gave a fuller vanilla over the robust spirit. Integration folds eugenol (clove) and vanillin (vanilla) into the malt, the heavy body fuller and richer. Maturation in the cool north east keeps the rich spirit balanced over the years. It passed to DCL and Scottish Malt Distillers in the 1920s and was later modernised. The big stills give a heavy spirit that takes a long, sherried maturation in its stride. Refill oak lets the robust Dailuaine character lead, malt and dried fruit beneath.

Bottled at a cask strength 53.1%, it is rich. A robust, sherried maltiness, with a soft vanilla from the oak. A dried fruit and a malty depth give it weight. A full, malty finish ends on dried fruit and a warm spice. This is a rich, malty Speyside single malt.