Glenallachie Single Cask for Europe – Batch 2 13 Years Old 2006 (Cask 1395)

A 13 year old GlenAllachie, a distillery bottling, from 2006, cask 1395, at 60.7%, 270 bottles in all. GlenAllachie is a deep, dark Speyside malt of dried fruit, chocolate and spice. Its water is the Lochnagar Burn, drawn down from the slopes of Ben Rinnes. It runs unusually long fermentations, up to a hundred and sixty hours, for a thick, ester rich and fruity spirit.

It was drawn from a thick, full bodied wash, for a thick, ester rich spirit the casks then deepen. Maturation came in ex-Bourbon wood, the oak gentle behind the spirit. By the integrating teens the raw notes fade and esters build, the rich spirit growing rounder and darker. Years in oak deepen the spirit to a darker gold, the body growing rounder and more resinous with time. Long ageing turns the fresh notes towards date, prune and a dark, bittersweet chocolate. The wood frames the spirit without ever stripping the full Speyside body.

At its natural 60.7% it is rich and chewy. A deep, dark sweetness, with a soft vanilla from the oak. A dark chocolate and a soft oak give it weight. Dried fruit, spice and a soft oak see it out. This is a dark, fruity Speyside single malt.