Glen Spey 17 Years Old 2007 Cask #5 (Signatory)

This Glen Spey was bottled by Signatory Vintage, a 17 year old, distilled in 2007, from cask 5, at 58.1%, one of 660 bottles. Glen Spey is a Speyside single malt, one of five distilleries in the town of Rothes. When the firm merged with Justerini and Brooks, Glen Spey became a key malt in the J and B blend.

The spirit was distilled in tall onion shaped stills, for a delicate make of fresh grass and orchard fruit. An Oloroso cask held it, drawing the light spirit deeper over the years. At oxidative maturity aldehydes lend a nutty edge while ellagitannins draw a gentle, drying grip across the malt. Active wood frames the fruit without ever crowding the delicate Speyside spirit. Vanillin and oak lactones from the wood lend vanilla and a soft coconut over the fruit. A light oiliness carries a waxy thread through the long, slow maturation.

At its natural 58.1% it is rich and grassy. A clean, grassy sweetness with a nutty thread, with dried fruit, fig and walnut from the cask. The body is light and clean, the fruit lifted by a gentle oak. The finish is rounded, nutty and clean. This is a fresh, fragrant Speyside single malt.