Edradour Natural Cask Strength – 7th Release 11 Years Old 2003

An official release of Edradour, an 11 year old, from 2003, at 56.5%, 705 bottles in all. Edradour is a creamy, sherried Highland single malt from one of the smallest distilleries in Scotland. It was founded in 1825, growing out of an old farmers' cooperative in the glen above Pitlochry.

It was distilled from unpeated malt in tiny copper stills and worm tubs, giving the full bodied, creamy Highland spirit. It was matured in refill ex-Bourbon oak, a soft vanilla beneath the rich spirit. Integration folds eugenol (clove) and vanillin (vanilla) into the oily malt, the body fuller and creamier. Years in oak round the spirit, the dried fruit and chocolate deepening over the oily core. Its tiny copper stills and worm tubs give a rich, oily, full bodied spirit. The full bodied spirit shows the cask clearly, the sherry and oak to the fore. The tiny stills and worm tubs give an oily spirit that takes the cask well.

At a natural 56.5% it is full and oily. A full, fruity sweetness, with a soft vanilla from the oak. Soft chocolate and a nutty oil sit behind the cask. The close is oily and warming, fruit over a gentle oak. This is Edradour, one of Scotland's smallest distilleries.