Glenallachie 12 Years Old (Port Finish)

This official GlenAllachie, a 12 year old, at 48%. This is part of the Wood Finish Series. GlenAllachie is a Speyside single malt, the home distillery of master distiller Billy Walker. It matures its spirit in sixteen dunnage warehouses on the distillery site at Aberlour. It runs unusually long fermentations, up to a hundred and sixty hours, for a thick, ester rich and fruity spirit.

The spirit was taken gently through wash and spirit stills, building a deep malt of dried fruit and dark sugar. It was matured in ex-Bourbon oak and finished in a Port cask, a layer of Port over the bourbon vanilla. By the integrating teens the raw notes fade and esters build, the rich spirit growing rounder and darker. The casks are picked closely, the wood matched to the rich GlenAllachie make. Active first fill wood drives the maturation, the cask deep in the malt. The full spirit deepens with time, the cask drawing out its darker register.

At 48%, undiluted, it is dark and full. A deep, dark sweetness, with red berry, plum and a dry spice from the cask. A baked apple and a warm cinnamon lift the middle. The close is rich and dark, fruit over a warm spice. This is a Speyside single malt of real standing.