Raasay The Draam Cask #R-02.4.1

This official Isle of Raasay single malt, from cask R-02.4.1 and bottled at 46.4%. Raasay is a modern island distillery, the first legal one on this small Hebridean isle off the coast of Skye. R&B Distillers, founded by Bill Dobbie and Alasdair Day, built the distillery from a blank sheet in 2017.

Distilled on water from the island well in Italian built copper stills, the make carried a blackberry fruit from its long fermentation. A wine cask shaped it, dark fruit threading through the spirit. Carrying no age, it leans on vivid fruit and active cask character. First fill and virgin casks work quickly on young spirit, so even a few years bring real depth. The island had a long history of illicit distilling before the first legal still arrived. Mineral rich water from the island well shapes the spirit before it meets the cask. The distillery does everything in house, from mashing to bottling, on the island.

At 46.4% it is supple and sweet. The wine cask adds blackberry, plum and a red berry lift with a clean coastal lift behind. It is fresh and vivid, the young spirit shining through. It closes long, fruity and warm. This is a modern Hebridean single malt.