Teaninich 15 Years Old 2004 Cask #301010 (Lady of the Glen)

Lady of the Glen selected this Teaninich, aged 15 year old from 2004, drawn from cask 301010 and bottled at 53.2%. 149 bottles in all. 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. A wine cask held it, layering berry fruit over the grassy malt. By this age the green spirit rounds into orchard fruit and a waxy depth. The unpeated spirit lets the wood and the green fruit speak without smoke. A 2013 expansion added a new six still house, more than doubling capacity. Most casks are refill ex-Bourbon, which lets the grassy spirit show through. Captain Hugh Munro built the distillery to give his tenants' barley a buyer.

At cask strength 53.2% it is muscular yet green. The Port cask adds plum and red berry, and green tea, lemon and a soft spice sit alongside a quiet vanilla from the refill oak. A green fruit and a gentle oak give it depth. A long, oily finish carries a green lift. This is a Johnnie Walker workhorse from the Highlands.