Dalmunach 8 Years Old 2016 Cask #10846463 (Duncan Taylor)

The Huntly bottler Duncan Taylor bottled this Dalmunach, an 8 year old, distilled in 2016, from cask 10846463, bottled at 54.2%, one of 66 bottles. Dalmunach was opened in 2015 by Chivas Brothers, making a light, fruity Speyside malt for Chivas Regal. Single malt Dalmunach is scarce, the spirit being a blend component first and foremost.

Made in modern copper stills for a clean, fresh make, for a light, fruity make of real freshness. A Marsala cask lent raisin and brown sugar. Bottled young and extractive, the oak gives quick vanillin (vanilla) and oak lactones (coconut) over a lively, fruity malt. Independent bottlers have been quick to release young single casks of this new distillery. Active wood frames the fruit without overwhelming the light, fresh spirit. The clean spirit shows the cask clearly, vanilla and fruit to the fore. Sixteen stainless washbacks feed four wash and four spirit stills.

At cask strength 54.2% it is full bodied. A bright, fruity sweetness, with plum and red berry from the cask. A clean citrus and a soft oak give it lift. The finish is clean, bright and fruity. This is Dalmunach, a new Speyside name on the Spey.