Deanston 21 Years Old 1997 Cask #53 (Meadowside Blending)

This Deanston was bottled by Meadowside Blending, a 21 year old, distilled in 1997, from cask 53, bottled at 50.9%, one of 210 bottles. Deanston is a bright, fruity Highland single malt distilled in a Victorian mill at Doune. It runs an open top mash tun, two wash and two spirit stills of a bulbous shape.

The spirit was mashed in the open top tun and fermented long for a fruity make, for the waxy, honeyed make Deanston is known for. Maturation came in an Oloroso cask, layered over the fruity Deanston make. Into oxidative maturity, slow air ingress builds fruity ethyl esters (apple and pear) and a honeyed depth over the wax. River Teith water and a long ferment give the fruity, estery Deanston make. Years in oak round the spirit, the green apple and honey deepening over the wax. It draws water from the River Teith, which also drives the turbine that powers the distillery.

Bottled at a cask strength 50.9%, it is rich. A waxy, malty sweetness, with dried fruit, fig and walnut from the cask. A baked apple and a gentle clove lift it. The finish runs long, fruity and warming. This is Deanston, the mill turned distillery on the Teith.