Imperial – 1979 Gordon & Macphail Private Collection (70cl)

Imperial 1979 is a Speyside single malt from the Gordon & Macphail Private Collection, part of The Recollection Series, which revives the character of distilleries that have since closed. It was matured in a refill American hogshead, cask 5619, and bottled in 61 bottles. The nose offers honeycomb, vanilla custard and a hint of beeswax polish. On the palate come cocoa powder, pecans, baked apple, ripe red apples, clove-studded tangerine, malted biscuit, chocolate-covered hazelnuts and faint Seville orange zest. The finish is full and long, with black pepper and light herbal tones.