Edradour 14 Years Old 1973 (Connoisseurs Choice)

From the Elgin house Gordon and MacPhail, a 14 year old Edradour, distilled in 1973, bottled at 40%. Edradour is a full bodied, oily Highland malt made on Ben Vrackie water at Pitlochry. It was founded in 1825, growing out of an old farmers' cooperative in the glen above Pitlochry.

The spirit was run through the small stills with their boil ball purifiers, giving the full bodied, creamy Highland spirit. It rested in ex-Bourbon oak, oak lactones lending vanilla and a little coconut. Integration folds eugenol (clove) and vanillin (vanilla) into the oily malt, the body fuller and creamier. Active wood frames the rich fruit without overwhelming the oily Highland spirit. The distillery sits in a pocket glen at Balnauld, in the hills above Pitlochry in Perthshire. A gentle maturation suits the oily make, the nutty richness growing with time. Its water comes from the Ben Vrackie springs in the hills above the distillery.

Reduced to 40%, it is mellow. Dried fruit, fig and a creamy vanilla, with a soft vanilla from the oak. The texture is oily and creamy, the fruit lifted by vanilla. The finish is rounded, fruity and gently spiced. This is a rich, oily Highland single malt.