Oban Distillers Edition 15 Years Old 1993

From a 1993 vintage bottled in 2008, this 15 year old belongs to the Distillers Edition, the annual release finished in Montilla Fino casks. The make is from the tiny distillery founded by the Stevenson brothers in 1794, one of the oldest in the country, at the heart of the Oban harbour town.

After its ex-Bourbon ageing the whisky was finished in dry Fino wood. The spirit comes off lamp glass stills run gently and condenses in hot external worms, the long copper contact softening it into a fruity make that gives the pale sherry a clean canvas. The flor yeast that defines Fino lives on the surface of the wine and feeds on it, leaving a dry, nutty, slightly bready character rather than the dark sugars of an oxidative sherry, which is where this edition gets its savoury edge.

At the standard 43% the make stays dry and nutty. Roasted almond, a yeasty bread note and a salt edge come from the dry sherry rather than sweet fruit, the oak adding a thin line of vanilla beneath. The salinity lifts honey and citrus, gentle smoke trailing a close that runs long and lightly nutty. The overall impression is lean and maritime, more savoury than sweet from first sip to last.