Rosebank 21 Years Old SMS The Roses Edition 5 (Speciality Drinks Ltd)

Single malt Rosebank, an independent Speciality Drinks Ltd bottling matured to 21 year old, and bottled at 49.5%. 633 bottles in all. The Lowland Rosebank, built in 1840 on the canal at Camelon, near Falkirk, was brought to a halt in 1993. After closure the site fell derelict, and thieves even took the copper stills in 2008.

The spirit was triple distilled and worm tub cooled, the Rosebank way, for the refined Lowland style quite its own. Maturation came in ex-Bourbon wood, lending honey and vanilla under the grass. Mid age brings a fuller honey and a deeper tropical note to the florals. Decades in oak build a waxy weight over the elegant Lowland distillate. The closed era stock is finite, and every bottle drawn is one fewer left. Rosebank stood on the Forth and Clyde Canal, which once carried its casks to market. The pairing of triple distillation and worm tubs was unique to Rosebank among Scotch distilleries.

At a natural 49.5% it is full and expressive. Vanilla and a light cream from the barrel, with lemon and cut grass. The mouthfeel is gentle, the honey carried on a waxy body. Marzipan and citrus see out a long finish. This is one of the great ghost whiskies of the Lowlands.