Glendronach 20 Years Old 1994 Cask #3398

A 20 year old Glendronach, a distillery bottling, from 1994, cask 3398, at 53.2%, 642 bottles in all. Glendronach is a Highland single malt, revived from 2008 by Billy Walker's BenRiach company. It passed to Brown Forman, owner of Jack Daniel's, in 2016 as part of a 285 million pound deal. Its water is the Dronac Burn, which also gave the distillery its name.

It was distilled to a rich, generous cut, for the rich, sherried make Glendronach is known for. It was matured in a Pedro Ximenez sherry puncheon, the wood working deep into the malt. Into oxidative maturity, slow air builds ripe esters and a darker chocolate, fig and date depth. Years in oak deepen the spirit to a darker gold, the body growing rounder and more resinous with time. The wood frames the spirit without ever stripping the full Highland body. Long ageing turns the fresh notes towards date, prune and a dark, bittersweet chocolate.

At its natural 53.2% it is rich and chewy. A rich, sherried sweetness, with raisin, date and treacle from the cask. It is full and fruity, the spirit carrying the cask. The finish runs long, full and warming. This is a deep, sherried Highland single malt.