Speyside Distillery 23 Years Old UD (UD – bottler)

Bottled by UD - bottler, this Speyside Distillery single malt matured to 23 year old, drawn from cask 12 and bottled at 49.5%. Set at Tromie Mills, the most southerly Speyside distillery, the Speyside Distillery was built by hand on a former barley mill site. George Christie bought the land in 1956 and had a stonemason raise the distillery by hand over the years that followed.

Distilled on River Tromie water in a tiny pair of pot stills, building the gentle Speyside style it is loved for. It was matured in refill ex-Bourbon oak, lending honey and vanilla. Beyond sixteen years the malt grows deep and honeyed, dried fruit and oak spice over orchard fruit. The short stills give body, which slow running and a clean cut keep light. The first single malt, Drumguish, was released in 1993 after three years in the warehouse. The distillery played the fictional Lagganmore in the BBC series Monarch of the Glen.

At 49.5%, undiluted, it is deep and honeyed. Orchard fruit and a floral lift sit alongside soft vanilla and honey from the cask. A ripe pear and a gentle spice lift it. The close is soft, fruit over gentle oak. This is the fresh Speyside style of the SPEY range.