Teaninich 12 Years Old 2009 Cask #17601701 (Connoisseurs Choice)

This Teaninich was from the independent bottler Gordon & MacPhail, aged 12 year old from 2009, drawn from cask 17601701 and bottled at 57.9%. The outturn was 693 bottles. Set at Alness in Easter Ross, Teaninich has distilled since 1817. In 1887 it became the first distillery north of Inverness with electricity and a telephone.

It was worked through the distillery's stills from a very clear wort, for the light, grassy, oily make Teaninich is known for. Maturation in a sherry cask laid dried fruit over the grassy malt. By this age the green spirit rounds into orchard fruit and a waxy depth. The light, oily make takes cask character well across maturation. The name comes from the Gaelic for house on the hill, a nod to the old estate. By the 1970s Teaninich was already one of the largest distilleries in Scotland. The River Averon runs beside the distillery on its way to the firth.

At cask strength 57.9% it is muscular yet green. The Oloroso adds figgy fruit and a warm nuttiness, and grass, pear and a gentle wax meet a quiet vanilla from the refill oak. The mouthfeel is waxy, the citrus carried on a grassy body. A long, oily finish carries a green lift. This is Teaninich's clean, grassy Highland style.