Edradour 10 Years Old 2011 Cask #42 (Signatory)

From the Pitlochry bottler Signatory Vintage, a 10 year old Edradour, distilled in 2011, from cask 42, bottled at 46%. Edradour is a Highland single malt distilled in a pocket glen near Pitlochry since 1825. It is one of the smallest traditional distilleries in Scotland, long run by just two or three hands.

Made in the smallest of stills and condensed in worm tubs, building the creamy Edradour style. Finished in an Oloroso cask, the wood building over the oily, full bodied spirit. Integration folds eugenol (clove) and vanillin (vanilla) into the oily malt, the body fuller and creamier. Maturation in the dunnage warehouses at Pitlochry is slow and steady. Its water comes from the Ben Vrackie springs in the hills above the distillery. The full bodied spirit shows the cask clearly, the sherry and oak to the fore. Vanillin and oak lactones from the wood lend vanilla and coconut over the fruit.

Reduced to 46%, it is mellow. A full, fruity sweetness, with dried fruit, fig and walnut from the cask. The texture is oily and creamy, the fruit lifted by vanilla. The finish runs long, nutty and warming. This is a rich, oily Highland single malt.