Craigellachie – 13 Year Old Bas Armagnac Cask Finish (75cl, 46%)

This is a 13 year old Speyside single malt from Craigellachie, bottled at 46% in a 750ml bottle. It is non-chill-filtered and has no added caramel colouring. The whisky spent about 12 years in a mix of ex-bourbon and ex-sherry casks, then just over a year in Bas-Armagnac barrels from Gascony. The Armagnac producers were chosen because, like Craigellachie, they distil using worm tubs. The nose offers baked apple, candied apricot, orange peel, vanilla custard and dried fig, with herbal notes and pear drop. The palate is medium-bodied, with caramel shortbread and malted barley, then orchard fruit, ginger, cinnamon and pineapple. The finish is long and warming, with toffee, dark chocolate, spicy oak and a nutty, espresso-like bitterness.