Glenfarclas 7 Years Old (Ex-Bourbon)

Glenfarclas from the distillery, a 7 year old, at 60%, 1800 bottles in all. Glenfarclas is a Speyside single malt, the house behind the pioneering 105 cask strength. Its slow, cool dunnage maturation loses very little to the angels each year.

Distilled to a rich, generous cut, shaping a rich Speyside body with real weight. A refill bourbon hogshead held it, keeping the full character to the fore. Young and extractive, the cask sheds vanillin and toasted sugars over the full, fruity spirit. Long ageing turns the fresh notes towards date, prune and a dark, bittersweet chocolate. Maturation runs slow and even in the dunnage warehouses at Ballindalloch. Years in oak deepen the spirit to a darker gold, the body growing rounder and more resinous with time. The full spirit deepens with time, the cask drawing out its darker register. Vanillin and oak lactones from the wood lend vanilla and a soft coconut over the fruit.

At its natural 60% it is rich and chewy. A deep, dark sweetness, lifted by a sweet oak. Beneath it run dried fruit, dark sugar and a warm spice. The finish is rounded, dark and spiced. This is a dark, fruity Speyside single malt.