Tamdhu 11 Years Old 2013 Cask #C25125 (Claxton’s)

Bottled by Claxton's, this Tamdhu, aged 11 year old from 2013, drawn from cask C25125 and bottled at 54.8%. Only 283 bottles were released. Set at Knockando on the River Spey, Tamdhu has distilled since 1897. It was built by a consortium of blenders led by William Grant and designed by Charles Doig; the name is Gaelic for little dark hill.

It was worked through onion stills for a rich Speyside spirit, then filled into sherry seasoned casks, the heart of the Tamdhu style. Maturation in Oloroso sherry laid fig and raisin over the spirit. At a youthful age the fruit is vivid and the sherry clear. Refill oak lets the fruity distillery character lead beneath the sherry. Ian Macleod runs Tamdhu alongside Glengoyne and Rosebank. Water is drawn from the Tamdhu Spring on the Speyside site. The distillery was built on a spot once known for illicit distilling. A full, fruity spirit gives Tamdhu the weight to carry active sherry wood.

Undiluted at 54.8%, it is layered. The Oloroso brings a fruity, sherried depth. The texture is rich and rounded, the fruit lifted by sherry. A long, sherried finish carries a nutty depth. This is the sherried Speyside malt of Tamdhu.