Glendullan 13 Years Old 2001 (Creative Whisky Company)

Creative Whisky Company bottled this Glendullan, a 13 year old, distilled in 2001, at 46%, one of 150 bottles. Glendullan is a Speyside single malt, long a blending malt and now a name in its own right. Its water rises at the Goats Well spring in the Conval Hills above the distillery. A second distillery was built alongside the original in 1972, the two running together until the old plant closed in 1985. Since 2007 its single malt has been bottled as the Singleton of Glendullan, aimed at the United States.

Distilled in onion shaped copper pot stills, giving a fresh, lightly fruity Speyside spirit. Ex-Bourbon casks held it, the American oak lending vanilla and a light honey. By the integrating teens the raw notes fade and esters build, the fruity spirit growing rounder and creamier. First fill wood drives the maturation, the cask clear in the light spirit. Maturation runs slow and even in the warehouses at Dufftown.

Reduced to 46%, it is mellow and fragrant. Apple, melon and a light honey, lifted by a soft oak. Soft pear and a light vanilla sit behind the cask. A fresh finish closes on pear and a soft oak. This is Glendullan's green, lightly fruity Speyside style.