Glenburgie 35 Years Old 1988 (The Whisky Agency)

A Glenburgie of a 35 year old chosen by the Whisky Agency, distilled in 1988, at 42.6%, one of the festival bottlings. Glenburgie is a light, fruity Speyside malt of orchard fruit, grass and a soft waxy thread. It has belonged to Chivas Brothers, part of Pernod Ricard, since 2005. Its water is drawn from a local spring near the distillery.

The spirit was drawn from a long fermentation, building a light malt of orchard fruit and fresh grass. Ex-Bourbon casks held it, the American oak lending vanilla and a light honey. Ethereal and fragile, the decades draw it to a honeyed, waxy delicacy of tropical fruit and old oak. A soft waxiness from the spirit carries a thread through the maturation. First fill wood drives the maturation, the cask clear in the spirit. Built for the blender's art, the make ages with quiet grace as a single malt. The spirit deepens with time, the cask drawing out a soft beeswax.

At a hearty 42.6% it carries real weight. A soft, orchard led sweetness with a floral lift, lifted by a soft oak. The body is light and clean, the fruit lifted by a soft oak. A fresh finish closes on apple and a soft oak. This is the fragrant blending malt of Alves.