Glenburgie 59 Years Old 1964 Cask #260

This Glenburgie was bottled by Gordon and MacPhail, a 59 year old, distilled in 1964, from cask 260, at 52.9%, one of 141 bottles. Glenburgie is a Speyside single malt, owned by Chivas Brothers and one of the larger Speyside distilleries. It was rebuilt in 1881 by Charles Chree Doig, the architect behind so many Speyside stillhouses. It sits near Alves in Moray, east of Forres, in the heart of Speyside. The old distillery was demolished and rebuilt in 2004, only the little stone office left standing.

The spirit was distilled from unpeated malt, for a light body with a gentle, waxy edge. It was matured in an Oloroso cask, the wood working into the fruity malt. Ethereal and fragile, the decades draw it to a honeyed, waxy delicacy of tropical fruit and old oak. 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 52.9%, undiluted, it is rich and waxy. A delicate, soft malt with a waxy edge, with dried fruit, fig and walnut from the cask. Pear, grass and a creamy oak fill the middle. A fresh finish closes on apple and a soft oak. This is a Speyside single malt of real lightness.