Glenesk 38 Years Old 1984 Cask #2636

Gordon and MacPhail, the Elgin grocer laying down casks on South Street since 1895, bottled this Glenesk, distilled in 1984, from cask 2636, at 50.5%, one of 103 bottles. Glenesk was a Highland single malt known over the years under several names, among them Hillside. It was rebuilt as a grain distillery from 1938, working a continuous Coffey still for over two decades. Much of its make went to blends, above all William Sanderson's Vat 69.

It was drawn from a long fermentation, shaping a gentle, grassy Highland character. It was fully matured in an Oloroso cask, the wood deep in the fruity spirit. At a great, fragile age oxidation rules, sotolon lending honey and dried fig as beeswax and a waxy note linger. A light, gently oily texture from the spirit carries through the maturation. The light, malty spirit deepened with time, the cask drawing out a soft honey.

At a natural 50.5% it is full and creamy. Pear, barley and a soft oak, with dried fruit, fig and walnut from the cask. Soft pear and a light honey sit behind the cask. The finish is rounded, honeyed and clean. This is the quiet, malty malt of Montrose.