Glasgow Distillery 2016 NSS Cask Series 017 (North Star)

A Glasgow single malt, selected and bottled by North Star Spirits, a 5 year old from 2016 and bottled at 51.5%. Only 278 bottles were released. The Glasgow Distillery Company was founded in 2012 and revived single malt distilling in Glasgow after more than a century. Water comes from Loch Katrine, and the whisky is bottled without chill filtration and at natural colour.

The spirit was drawn off copper stills fed by Loch Katrine water, for a young, fruity spirit ready for active wood. An ex-Bourbon barrel shaped it, American oak giving vanilla. Bottled without chill filtration, the texture stays full and the cask speaks clearly. Its 1770 name recalls the old Glasgow Distillery at Dundashill, founded in 1770 and closed in 1902. Makar Gin came first, in 2014, and helped fund the return of whisky to the city. The first single malt casks were filled in 2015, the first whisky released in 2018.

At a natural 51.5% it is bold and full. Apple, citrus and a gentle malt lead, and the ex-Bourbon lends vanilla, honey and a soft apple. It is fruity and bold, the spirit and oak well matched. Orchard fruit and a soft oak see out the finish. This is the 1770 single malt of Glasgow.