Royal Brackla 10 Years Old 2014 Cask #9345383 (Duncan Taylor)

Bottled by Duncan Taylor, this Royal Brackla, a 10 year old from 2014, drawn from cask 9345383 and bottled at 54.6%. 94 bottles in all. Founded in 1812 near Nairn, on the Cawdor Estate, Royal Brackla is the King's Own Whisky. Water for the make is drawn from the Cawdor Burn.

The spirit was run through lamp glass spirit stills for a clean, fruity spirit, to build a fragrant, orchard fruit character. It was matured in refill ex-Bourbon oak, lending honey and vanilla. At a youthful age the fruit is lively and the spice gentle. The clean, fruity new make takes wood gracefully across long maturation. Cawdor Burn water and tall stills shape a clean, elegant spirit. The royal warrant set Brackla apart in the early days of legal whisky. Few Highland malts wear their history as openly as this one. The spirit was long destined for blends before its single malt revival. Royal Brackla was the first Scotch whisky ever to be granted a royal warrant.

At 54.6%, undiluted, it is deep and honeyed. Green apple and a fragrant lift sit alongside soft vanilla and honey from the cask. It is clean and elegant, the fragrant spirit shining through. It finishes clean, elegant and fruity. This is a Highland malt with a royal past.