Strathmore 32 Years Old 1972 (Rest & be Thankful Whisky Company)

This bottling carries the original Strathmore name, the identity George Christie first gave his Cambus plant when it opened in 1958 as a malt distillery before switching wholly to grain. Bottled at 32 years old from a 1972 vintage by the Rest and be Thankful Whisky Company, it is a relic of the distillery's earliest identity, with an outturn of 621 bottles. The grain itself came from the patent stills that made North of Scotland.

Christie cut the spirit wide to keep more character, and 32 years in ex-Bourbon casks places this in the oxidative and evaporative band, where dried fruit, leather and old wood develop as the spirit slowly concentrates in the cask.

Bottled at 47.2% cask strength, it holds good weight for its age. Vanilla comes from vanillin as the lignin breaks down, the caramelised hemicellulose lends toffee and a chocolate depth, and the oak lactones add coconut. The source notes point to chocolate, dried fruit, honey, leather, old wood and tobacco, a richly mature grain whisky carrying the name of a distillery that exists now only on a handful of labels. Collectors should note that a separate blend was also once marketed as Strathmore, so this single grain under the original distillery name is the genuine article.