Glencraig 1975 (G&M) (Cask RO/12/02)

Chosen by Gordon and MacPhail, the Elgin grocer laying down casks on South Street since 1895, this a 37 year old Glencraig, distilled in 1975, from cask RO/12/02, at 46%. Glenburgie is a Speyside malt, this bottling fuller and more oily than the light house spirit. It was expanded to six stills after the rebuild, one of the bigger distilleries in the group.

It was drawn from the same mash but cut heavier, for a fuller, oilier make with real weight. An ex-Bourbon barrel shaped it, vanillin and a soft coconut under the malt. At a great, fragile age oxidation rules, sotolon lending honey and dried fig as beeswax and a waxy note linger. Long ageing turns the fresh apple towards beeswax, tropical fruit and a gentle spice. Years in oak deepen the spirit to old gold, the body growing rounder and waxier with time. Active wood frames the fruit without ever crowding the Speyside spirit.

At 46% it is smooth and fruity. Pear, honey and a thick, waxy oak, with a gentle oak sweetness. A fuller orchard fruit and a soft spice give it weight. The close is full and oily, fruit over a waxy depth. This is a malt of real oily weight.