Glenfarclas The Family Casks 28 Years Old 1986

This official Glenfarclas, a 28 year old, from 1986, cask 3456, at 55.5%, 542 bottles in all. Glenfarclas is a Speyside single malt, the house behind the pioneering 105 cask strength. It draws on that deep inventory for the Family Casks, single vintages reaching back to the 1950s. Direct firing chars the wash a little, lending the rich, nutty depth Glenfarclas is known for.

It was distilled to a rich, generous cut, the direct fired stills lending a nutty depth. Maturation came in an Oloroso sherry cask, layered over the full Glenfarclas make. Through the evaporative decades the esters fold into raisin, fig, beeswax and a bittersweet chocolate. Active wood drives the maturation, the cask deep in the malt. 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.

At its natural 55.5% it is rich and chewy. A deep, dark sweetness, with dried fruit, fig and walnut from the cask. The mouthfeel is full and coating, the fruit dark and sweet. The finish runs long, full and warming. This is a dark, fruity Speyside single malt.