Glen Garioch 29-year-old (D.1968, B.1997) Cask # 9 / 56.6% / 0.7l

Glen Garioch is a small distillery based in Old Meldrum in the Eastern Highlands.

Built in 1797, since 1968 it has been owned by Morrison Bowmore Distillers, now part of Beam Suntory. In the second half of the 20th century Glen Garioch was considered one of the peatedest single malts from the Highlands. When the distillery resumed operations in 1997 after a two-year break, it completely abandoned the use of peated malt. Around the same time, Morrison Bowmore began issuing the prestigious Official Distillery Archive mini-series. The Glen Garioch presented here is a whisky from a single hogshead cask (No. 9) filled on 18th May 1968, bottled at cask strength (56.6% abv) 29 years later.

Nose: powerful, breath of earth and peat, freshly roasted coffee beans, bitter orange jam, dried plums, raisins, nutmeg, sherry-soaked oak, dried herbs and traces of forest floor.

Palate: wonderfully balanced, dried dark fruits, dark chocolate, espresso, honey, roasted almonds, black pepper, leather, high-class cigar and peat smoke in the background.

Finish: very long, with notes of sherry, peat, oak, dark chocolate, espresso, black pepper and a distant whiff of smoke.