Tamdhu Cuatro Reserva

This Tamdhu, an official release and bottled at 41.2%. Set at Knockando on the River Spey, Tamdhu has distilled since 1897. For decades its malt fed blends such as the Famous Grouse and Cutty Sark.

It was worked through onion stills for a rich Speyside spirit, then filled into sherry seasoned casks, the heart of the Tamdhu style. An Oloroso sherry cask wrapped the malt in dried fruit and a nutty depth. Carrying no age, it leans on dried fruit, nuts and a warm spice. Dunnage and racked warehousing on site gives a slow maturation by the Spey. The Spey valley's cool air gives a slow, even maturation in the warehouses. Tamdhu was built in 1897 by a consortium of blenders led by William Grant. 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 41.2% it is clean and fruity. The Oloroso brings fig, raisin and a gentle ginger. It is full and deep, the sherried spirit shining through. The close is warm, dried fruit over soft oak. This is Ian Macleod's sherry led Speysider.