Port Dundas 14 Years Old 2008 Cask #585869+585874 (Signatory Vintage)

Signatory Vintage selected this single grain Port Dundas, a 14 year old grain, from 2008, drawn from cask 585869+585874 and bottled at 46%. The Glasgow grain distillery Port Dundas, raised in 1811 at the highest point in Glasgow, was a major grain distillery until closed in 2010 after two hundred years. For decades its light spirit went into blends like White Horse and Bell's.

The spirit was drawn off tall continuous column stills on wheat and malted barley, a soft, sweet make ideal for blending. Maturation in Oloroso sherry gave the grain a darker, nutty and dried fruit character. Fifteen years or so gives the oak time to build sweetness over the light spirit. Grain matures faster than malt, the oak shaping a light spirit into something sweet and round.

Bottled at 46%, it is gentle. Dark fruit and walnut come from the Oloroso, while the oak lactones a creamy coconut, vanilla comes from the oak lignin, and a fudge sweetness from caramelised hemicellulose, with grain sweetness running underneath. A touch of warm spice lifts the creamy body. The finish runs long, creamy and gently spiced. This is one of a dwindling number of bottlings from a closed grain distillery.