Glenallachie, Scottish Virgin Oak, 8-Year-Old, Speyside, Single Malt Scotch Whisky (48%)
About this SPIRIT
Glenallachie Distillery, Speyside
Glenallachie Distillery was built in 1967 by Charles Mackinlay & Co, who operated as part of the Scottish and Newcastle Breweries at the time.
It temporarily ceased production between 1987 and 1989, when it was purchased by Invergordon Distillers, who also owned Isle of Jura.
A new lease of life followed under the ownership of Chivas, that acquired the distillery in 1989. Glenallachie distillery bottlings include a 12 Year Old and a 15 Year Old, while the Independent Bottlings comprise Connoisseurs Choice ( by Gordon & MacPhail), Dun Bheagan (by Ian McLeod), Provenance (by Douglas Laing), and Un-Chill Filtered (Signatory Bottling from cask).
The house style is soft, elegant, clean, lightly malty, and with just a whiff of peat. An excellent aperitif.
Speyside Whisky
To some Speyside represents the jewel in whisky’s crown. Speyside is the home of legal whisky production and it’s best known examples. Around the world Glenlivet, Macallan, Glenfiddich, Glenrothes and Glenfarclas typify all that whisky, at it’s best has to offer. At it’s heart running from the Monadhliath mountains north to the sea, is the River Spey. It is the fastest flowing river in Britain, and also well known for its salmon fishing.
Speyside is the principal whisky-producing region: Speyside has within it some forty-six operating distilleries - over half the total number in the entire Scotland.
Speysides are essentially sweet whiskies. They have little peaty character They are typically highly perfumed, feminine and elegant.
The classical nature of Speyside’s malts means that a number of the finest malts are used almost exclusively for blending. It is the top Speysider’s that give good blends their ‘Top Dressing’.
Malts such as Mortlach, Glen Elgin, Strathmill and Benrinnes are rarely found as distillery bottlings, however when individual casks are tracked down by independent bottlers such as our Own Selection Single Malt Whiskies the resultant whisky can be quite wonderful.
When is a wine ready to drink?
We provide drinking windows for all our wines. Alongside the drinking windows there is a bottle icon and a maturity stage. Bear in mind that the best time to drink a wine does also depend on your taste.
Not ready
These wines are very young. Whilst they're likely to have lots of intense flavours, their acidity or tannins may make them feel austere. Although it isn't "wrong" to drink these wines now, you are likely to miss out on a lot of complexity by not waiting for them to mature.
Ready - youthful
These wines are likely to have plenty of fruit flavours still and, for red wines, the tannins may well be quite noticeable. For those who prefer younger, fruitier wines, or if serving alongside a robust meal, these will be very enjoyable. If you choose to hold onto these wines, the fruit flavours will evolve into more savoury complexity.
Ready - at best
These wines are likely to have a beautiful balance of fruit, spice and savoury flavours. The acidity and tannins will have softened somewhat, and the wines will show plenty of complexity. For many, this is seen as the ideal time to drink and enjoy these wines. If you choose to hold onto these wines, they will become more savoury but not necessarily more complex.
Ready - mature
These wines are likely to have plenty of complexity, but the fruit flavours will have been almost completely replaced by savoury and spice notes. These wines may have a beautiful texture at this stage of maturity. There is lots to enjoy when drinking wines at this stage. Most of these wines will hold in this window for a few years, though at the very end of this drinking window, wines start to lose complexity and decline.
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Description
Glenallachie, since 2017 under the stewardship of Billy Walker, is becoming known for richly-fruited Speyside malt whisky, with depth and complexity aplenty. It is exceptionally rare to find Scottish oak being used for whisky cask production; very few trees from the windswept West Coast forest grow straight enough for a cooper's liking! Nevertheless, it is used here to great effect, lending a beautiful note of floral honey, citrus oils, sweet baking spice and hazelnuts.
Rob Whitehead, Spirits Buyer, Berry Bros. & Rudd (November 2024)
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