Tamdhu 6 Years Old 2004 Cask #5440 (van Wees)

Single malt Tamdhu, an independent van Wees bottling, aged 6 year old from 2004, drawn from cask 5440 and bottled at 60.2%. The outturn was 625 bottles. Tamdhu was founded in 1897 by a group of blenders in Knockando, in the heart of Speyside, and it was revived by Ian Macleod Distillers in 2013. The old Knockando railway station serves as the distillery's visitor centre.

The spirit was run through the distillery's onion shaped stills, and laid down in Oloroso casks for its sherried depth. Maturation in Oloroso sherry laid fig and raisin over the spirit. At this age the spirit is fresh and fruity, the sherry bright over orchard fruit. The full bodied make carries the sherry cask well across long maturation. The arrival of the Strathspey railway in the 1860s made the distillery possible. For decades its malt fed blends such as the Famous Grouse and Cutty Sark. Mothballed in 2010, the distillery was revived by Ian Macleod and relaunched in 2013.

At a hearty 60.2% it carries real weight. The Oloroso brings dried fruit, fig and a nutty depth. A baked apple and a warm ginger lift it. Raisin and a warm ginger draw out the close. This is the sherry cask malt of Knockando.