Balvenie 21 Year Portwood (75cl, 43%)

This is a 21-year-old Speyside single malt from The Balvenie, bottled at 43% in a 750ml bottle. The whisky spends 21 years in ex-bourbon barrels before a finishing period in port pipes. Those pipes are themselves 30 years old, previously holding tawny port. The distillery in Dufftown keeps its own floor maltings and cooperage. The nose is ripe raisin and jammy red fruit, cherries and peaches, with vanilla caramel and a light floral note. The palate is silky and creamy, with honey, chewy red berries, baking spice, walnut, leather and a thread of espresso. The finish is long and gentle, nutty, with dried fruit and a slightly tannic close.