Edradour Ballechin 2010 Cask #256

This official Ballechin, a 10 year old, from 2010, cask 256, at 55.1%, 340 bottles in all. Ballechin is Edradour's heavily peated malt, smoke laid over a rich, oily Highland spirit. Under Signatory the range has grown to a wide run of sherry and wine cask bottlings.

Worked through worm tubs from heavily peated malt for a smoky, oily spirit, the worm tubs lending weight to the smoke. It rested in ex-Bourbon oak, oak lactones lending vanilla and a little coconut. By the integrating teens congeners fade and esters build, the smoke knitting with the rich, oily spirit. Active wood frames the rich fruit without overwhelming the oily Highland spirit. A 2018 expansion added a second still house, the production still small and traditional. The cool Highland air of the glen gives a slow, even maturation in the small Edradour warehouses.

At 55.1%, undiluted, it is deep and concentrated. Woodsmoke, oily malt and a dried fruit, with a soft vanilla from the oak. Beneath the smoke run dried fruit, chocolate and a soft oil. A long, smoky finish carries dried fruit and a soft ash. This is Ballechin's heavily peated, oily style.