Dailuaine 13 Years Old 2012 Cask #C25136 (Claxton’s)

The bottler Claxton's bottled this Dailuaine, a 13 year old, distilled in 2012, from cask C25136, bottled at 56.8%, one of 324 bottles. Dailuaine is a Diageo Speyside distillery, its robust malt the backbone of many a blend. In 1889 it became the first distillery to use the pagoda roof, the Doig Ventilator designed by Charles Doig.

The spirit was made in large copper stills for a rich, robust make, for a rich, meaty make that suits sherry wood. An Oloroso hogshead lent fig, raisin and a savoury, nutty depth, the heavy spirit soaking it up. Integration folds eugenol (clove) and vanillin (vanilla) into the malt, the heavy body fuller and richer. A first fill sherry cask suits the robust spirit, dried fruit meeting the meaty weight. Most of its make goes to blending, with a Flora and Fauna sixteen year old the regular single malt. The clean spirit shows the cask clearly, vanilla and fruit over a rich malt.

At cask strength 56.8% it is full bodied. A rich, full bodied sweetness, with dried fruit, fig and walnut from the cask. It is robust and fruity, the full bodied spirit shining through. The finish is deep, rich and savoury. This is one of Speyside's heavier single malts.