Cotswolds Peated Cask Single Malt (70cl, 59.6%)

Cotswolds Peated Cask is an English single malt bottled at cask strength, 59.6%, in a 70cl bottle. It comes from an edition of 1,600 bottles and belongs to the Cask Expressions Collection, which puts different types of cask at the centre. The smoke here comes from the wood. The whisky spent its entire maturation in Islay quarter casks that had previously held peated whisky, so it is not simply a finish. The barley is grown in the Cotswolds and malted on traditional malting floors. It is non-chill-filtered and of natural colour. The nose offers vanilla, a light note of charred wood, dried fruit and a hint of spice. The palate has creamy peat smoke, light fruit and tannic oak. The finish recalls glowing embers, with blossom honey and a woody sweetness.