Glendronach 150th Anniversary (1826 1976)

A Glendronach, a distillery bottling, at 40%. Glendronach is a Highland single malt whose founder was an early champion of sherry cask maturation. It was bought in 2008 by Billy Walker's BenRiach company, who rebuilt it as a heavily sherried single malt. Its water is the Dronac Burn, which also gave the distillery its name. By 1862 it had grown into the largest duty paying distillery in the Highlands. It joined William Teacher and Sons in 1960 and became a core malt of the Teacher's blend.

The spirit was distilled to a rich, generous cut, for the rich, sherried make Glendronach is known for. Maturation came in ex-Bourbon wood, the oak gentle behind the spirit. Carrying no age, soft vanillin and dried fruit suggest a fair spell in active oak. Years in oak deepen the spirit to a darker gold, the body growing rounder and more resinous with time. The full bodied spirit takes active wood well, carrying its dark sugars through the years.

Reduced to 40%, it is mellow and sweet. A rich, sherried sweetness, lifted by a sweet oak. Beneath it run dried fruit, dark sugar and a warm spice. The finish is long, rich and spiced. This is a deep, sherried Highland single malt.