Glen Keith 23 Years Old 1993 (Authentic Collection)

The Campbeltown house Cadenhead bottled this Glen Keith, a 23 year old, distilled in 1993, bottled at 51.2%, one of 240 bottles. Glen Keith is a Speyside single malt made behind Strathisla, mostly for the Chivas blends. It was mothballed in 1999 and revived by Pernod Ricard in 2013 after a full refit.

The spirit was run through the tall stills on Balloch Hill water for a light make, for a light, elegant spirit with a soft malt. An ex-Bourbon barrel shaped it, vanillin lending vanilla under the apple. Through the evaporative decades the spirit concentrates, esters folding into mango, beeswax and a soft honey. The tall, narrowing stills give a light spirit that takes the cask well. Its first permanent single malt was released in 2017, the Distillery Edition. Maturation in the racked warehouses at Keith is slow and steady. The clean, fruity make takes cask flavour well while keeping its apple and pear.

Bottled at a cask strength 51.2%, it is rich. A light, orchard fruit and citrus, with a soft vanilla from the oak. A baked apple and a gentle spice lift it. Apple, pear and a soft oak see out the finish. This is Glen Keith's clean, fruity Speyside style.