Raasay Rye and Sherry Double Cask Cask #22/672

An Isle of Raasay distillery bottling from the Distillery Special Release, from cask 22/672 and bottled at 60.1%. The Isle of Raasay Distillery opened in 2017, the first legal still on an island with a long history of illicit distilling. The house makes both peated and unpeated spirit, married across six signature casks.

It was drawn off a lantern wash still and a straight necked spirit still, following a long ferment that lends the new make a blackberry lift. Maturation in sherry quarter casks drove a fast, rich dried fruit character. Without an age statement, it is fresh, vibrant and cask forward. Maturation on the island, beside the sea, lends a clean coastal freshness. First fill and virgin casks let this young spirit gain depth quickly. The distillery opened in 2017 and poured its first single malt in 2020. Raasay is a small island in the Inner Hebrides, just east of Skye.

At its natural 60.1% it is concentrated. The Oloroso and Pedro Ximenez sherry bring raisin, date, fig and walnut. A dark berry fruit and a baking spice give it real lift. Dark fruit and spice see out a long finish. This is a bold young malt from Scotland's newest island distillery.