Royal Lochnagar 12-year-old / 40% / 0.7l

Royal Lochnagar, the smallest distillery in the Diageo portfolio, is about a mile from Balmoral Castle, the summer residence of the British royal family.

Equipped with one pair of small stills, it produces less than half a million liters of distillate per year. In the past, Royal Lochnagar was an ingredient in the VAT 69 blend, and currently it is part of the Johnnie Walker Blue Label and Windsor formulas. As a single malt, it has long been offered in a 12-year-old version, composed mainly of distillates aged in third-fill European and American oak barrels. In 2008, Royal Lochnagar 12 years old was included in the extended Classic Malts series.

Aroma : delicate, malty with notes of toffee and brown sugar, traces of hay and oak shavings, subdued scent of fruit and linseed.

Taste: mild and pleasantly balanced, breakfast cereals, caramel, a trace of licorice, light fruity notes, a pinch of spices and a bit of oak.

Finish : medium long, dry, with notes of spices and oak.