Deanston 13 Years Old 2009 Cask #6348 (Alistair Walker Whisky Company)

This Deanston was bottled by the Alistair Walker Whisky Company, a 13 year old, distilled in 2009, from cask 6348, bottled at 52.5%, one of 261 bottles. Deanston is a Highland malt made in a vaulted stone mill, waxy and malty in style. It uses 100% Scottish barley and bottles its malt unchillfiltered, with no added colour.

The spirit was distilled slowly for a clean, fruity spirit, giving the soft, malty Highland spirit. A Marsala cask held it, shaping the honeyed spirit over the years. By the integrating teens congeners fade and esters build, the waxy, honeyed spirit growing rounder. The waxy texture is the Deanston signature, carried through the years in cask. The cool, even temperature of the old weaving shed gives a slow, steady maturation. A gentle maturation suits the soft make, the honey and wax growing richer with time. The mill ran for 180 years before cotton declined and the site became a distillery.

Bottled at a cask strength 52.5%, it is rich. Green fruit, honey and a soft spice, with a raisined, herbal sweetness from the cask. A baked apple and a gentle clove lift it. The finish runs long, fruity and warming. This is a waxy, honeyed Highland single malt.