Tamdhu Dalbeallie Dram (62%)

This official Tamdhu single malt and bottled at 62%. Only 1000 bottles were released. Tamdhu was built in 1897 at Knockando on the River Spey, and it long fed blends before its single malt revival. 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. No age is given, but the sherried depth points to good years in oak. Refill oak lets the fruity distillery character lead beneath the sherry. 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. Sherry casks, both Spanish and American oak, define the modern Tamdhu.

Bottled at a cask strength 62%, it is intense. The Oloroso brings dried fruit, nuts and a soft spice. Beneath it run fig, raisin and a warm spice. It closes long, sherried and warm. This is the sherried Speyside malt of Tamdhu.