Tullibardine 10 Years Old 2015 (Hogshead Imports)

From Hogshead Imports comes this Tullibardine, a 10 year old from 2015 and bottled at 55.6%. 71 bottles in all. Set in Blackford, on the edge of the Highlands, Tullibardine has distilled since 1949. Picard brought a range of wine cask finishes, named for the size of the cask: the 225 Sauternes, 228 Burgundy and 500 Sherry.

It was drawn off copper pot stills fed by the Danny Burn, for a soft, vanilla scented spirit. Maturation came in ex-Bourbon wood, with vanilla under the malt. Younger here, it keeps a light, honeyed freshness over vanilla. Bourbon wood frames the make with vanilla, the wine casks adding fruit. The Murray and Custodian's Collections gather its older and rarer bottlings. Blackford's spring water has drawn brewers and distillers to the village for centuries. Tullibardine was founded in 1949 by the architect William Delme-Evans, the first new distillery in post war Scotland. King James IV is said to have bought ale at a Blackford brewery in 1488, on the site the distillery now occupies.

Undiluted at 55.6%, it is layered. A gentle vanilla from the wood runs under a mellow, honeyed character. A dried fruit and a soft oak give it depth. A warming, honeyed finish lingers. This is a gentle, honeyed Highland single malt.