Fettercairn 10 Years Old 2009 Cask #1099 (A.D. Rattray)

This Fettercairn was bottled by A.D. Rattray, a 10 year old, distilled in 2009, from cask 1099, bottled at 58.9%, one of 290 bottles. Fettercairn is a Highland single malt shaped by the unique cooling rings on its stills. In 2018 the distillery relaunched with a new core range under maker Gregg Glass.

It was distilled slow and light for the tropical Fettercairn style, the cooling rings lifting a clean, tropical character. First fill bourbon gave a fuller vanilla and a touch of coconut from the lactones. Through integration spirit and wood marry, vanillin settling into a rounded vanilla as ethyl esters lend a riper pineapple and pear. The cool Highland air of the Mearns gives a slow, even maturation in the dunnage warehouses. It was the second distillery licensed in Scotland after the Excise Act of 1823. Long ageing turns the fresh tropical fruit towards dried mango, coffee and a soft spice.

At cask strength 58.9% it is full bodied. Pineapple, pear and a creamy vanilla, with a soft vanilla from the oak. Soft tropical fruit and a vanilla sit behind the cask. The close is light and warming, fruit over a gentle oak. This is the cooling ring malt of the Mearns.