Edradour 9 Years Old 2010 Cask #389 (van Wees)

This Edradour was bottled by the Dutch bottler van Wees, a 9 year old, distilled in 2010, from cask 389, bottled at 59%, one of 644 bottles. Edradour is a creamy, sherried Highland single malt from one of the smallest distilleries in Scotland. It keeps the old ways, with an open cast iron mash tun, Oregon pine washbacks and worm tub condensers.

It was worked through Oregon pine washbacks and tiny stills for a rich, oily spirit, for a full, oily make of dried fruit and chocolate. It was matured in an Oloroso cask, the wood working slowly into the rich malt. Young and extractive, the cask sheds vanillin (vanilla) and toasted sugars (light caramel) over the creamy make. The cool Highland air of the glen gives a slow, even maturation in the small Edradour warehouses. A rare Morton refrigerator still cools the wort, one of the last in use in Scotland.

At a natural 59% it is full and oily. Baked apple, marzipan and a creamy malt, with dried fruit, fig and walnut from the cask. Soft chocolate and a nutty oil sit behind the cask. Dried fruit, chocolate and a soft oak see out a long finish. This is a Highland single malt of real character.