Glasgow Distillery 2021 BD (Best Dram)

Best Dram bottled this Glasgow single malt, a 3 year old from 2021, drawn from cask 9 and bottled at 56.2%. A release of 55 bottles. The Glasgow Distillery Company, set up in 2012 in Hillington, was Glasgow's first malt distillery in over a hundred years. The distillery is known for adventurous cask maturation, from Cognac and Marsala to Port and Tequila.

Made in copper stills for the fresh, fruity house make, for a fruity, vibrant make. Maturation in a sherry cask laid dried fruit over the fruit. A young, vibrant spirit and a bold cask suit one another here. It sits in Hillington Business Park in the southwest of Glasgow, just off the M8. Founders Liam Hughes and Mike Hayward set out to bring single malt back to the city. The stills are named for the founders' families and for the MacDonald artist sisters. A young distillery, it leans on active wood to bring its whisky to life quickly.

At cask strength 56.2% it is muscular. Pear, vanilla and a citrus lift lead, and the Pedro Ximenez lends raisin, date and treacle. The mouthfeel is full, the fruit carried on a young body. The finish runs fresh, lively and clean. This is a fruity young single malt from Glasgow.