Glenallachie 25 Years Old 1992 (Small Batch)

Chosen by Cadenhead, Scotland's oldest independent bottler, Aberdeen born in 1842 and now in Campbeltown, this a 25 year old GlenAllachie, distilled in 1992, at 56%, one of 540 bottles. GlenAllachie is a Speyside single malt known for its heavy sherry and wine cask maturation. Its water is the Lochnagar Burn, drawn down from the slopes of Ben Rinnes. It was mothballed in 1985 and reopened in 1989, a modern distillery by Speyside standards.

The spirit was taken gently through wash and spirit stills, building a deep malt of dried fruit and dark sugar. It rested in ex-Bourbon oak, oak lactones lending a creamy vanilla. Through the evaporative decades the esters fold into raisin, fig, beeswax and a bittersweet chocolate. Years in oak deepen the spirit to a darker gold, the body growing rounder and more resinous with time. The wood frames the spirit without ever stripping the full Speyside body.

At a natural 56% it is full and rich. Baked apple, honey and a dark chocolate, with a warm oak spice. The body is full and rich, the fruit deep and dark. The finish is long, rich and spiced. This is a full bodied Speyside single malt of real richness.