Imperial 21 Years Old TWEx

Imperial spent most of its life supplying blends and rarely appeared as a single malt; since its 1998 closure and 2013 demolition, what survives is almost entirely independent bottlings. The Whisky Exchange drew this 21 years old release from 1998 spirit. The outturn was 186 bottles, released for the UK.

The distillery's large stills gave a clean spirit rich in esters, floral and faintly waxy, typical of Speyside before its closure. This bottling matured in ex-Bourbon American oak. Across 21 years, the toasted staves released vanillin, which reads as vanilla, and oak lactones, which carry coconut, while the cask char filtered heavier sulphur notes from the spirit.

Bottled at 46.8%, the ex-Bourbon wood supplies furfural for toasted almond, eugenol for clove and warm spice, and maltol for a soft toffee sweetness. The long maturation draws tannins from the oak, drying the finish into clean wood.