Imperial 24 Years Old 1998 Cask Series 020 (North Star)

Imperial was a Speyside distillery at Carron that fell silent for the last time in 1998 and was demolished in 2013, which caps its single malt at whatever was already in cask. North Star Spirits drew this 24 years old release from 1998 spirit for its Cask Series 020 range. The outturn was 180 bottles, released for Germany.

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 24 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 its natural cask strength of 49.8%, without dilution, the ex-Bourbon wood supplies furfural for toasted almond, eugenol for clove and warm spice, and maltol for a soft toffee sweetness. Recorded bottle notes run to citrus and fresh orchard fruit. The long maturation draws tannins from the oak, drying the finish into clean wood.