The GlenDronach 23 Years Old 1993 Cask #40 (58.5%, OB, Batch 13, 384 Bottles, 2016)

• Category: Highland single malt scotch whisky
• Origin: GlenDronach Distillery
• Bottling: Benriach Distillery Company
• ABV: 58.5%
• Cost: £147.95

What they say:

A 23 year old single Oloroso Sherry butt matured whisky from the 13th batch of releases. The cask was filled on 15th January 1993 with an outturn of 384 bottles in January 2016.

Nose:

Rich off the bat, dried fruit, treacle, mysterious spices…

Palate:

Nutty cereal, dried apricot, mint and stem ginger biscuits.

Finish:

Oak, coffee, hint of smoke.

What I say:

Distilled in 1993 at Glendronach and matured for 23 years in Oloroso Sherry Butt, cask #40 before bottling in January 2016 as part of the 13th Batch of GlenDronach’s single cask releases. I can’t specifically remember how/where/why I chose this particular expression to try and then why I left it languishing on a shelf for nearly 12 months before cracking this one open. It was potentially a #Dramvent option though I went for the 24yo from Batch 14 instead probably as I had other 23 year old to choose from.

Appearance:

Treacle / dark brown (17/20), long medium-thick legs & a few finer tears

Nose:

Dried fruit and nuts, dark sugars, treacle, molasses, Christmas pudding, spiced, plum duff, rum & raisin and cigar smoke

Taste:

Rancio, dried fruit mixture; raisin, cherry with baking spices; cinnamon, nutmeg, clove, treacle and molasses, syrupy and full-bodied in texture but not too sweet in flavour, nutty, ginger nut biscuits, smoked unsweetened almonds and chestnuts roasted on an open coal fire

Finish:

Long, oaky, dark chocolate and coffee; slightly bitter, sweet spiced dried fruit and wisps of cigar smoke

Overall:

Superb, not too sweet and with a lovely structure, this one watered well and revealed more and more facets though it was massively drinkable at cask strength anyway! I need to spend more time and more water on this one exploring all of its depth.

Score: 91/100

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