2011 A.D. Rattray Cask Collection Dailuaine 12 Year Old Cask Strength Single Malt Scotch Whisky (700ml)

A first fill bourbon barrel offers accelerated wood impact compared with more widely used refill hogsheads, due to the richer oak, and higher surface-to-liquid ratio. Arguably, however, accelerated maturation is only possible with a robust style like the meaty make of Dailuaine. Its distillate is not easily overpowered and balances the vanilla sweetness with a profound savoury element. This example has keynotes of citrus fruit and sweet nuts. Cask 800471 yielded 241 bottles at a natural strength of 57.3% Alc./Vol. Non chill filtered.

Notes from the bottlers... Colour: Yellow gold. Nose: Bright tangerine, vanilla custard and toasted marshmallow. Palate: Desiccated coconut, ginger snap and brioche loaf. Finish: Thick, oozy honey lifted by tart citrus and gentle cinnamon.

If unusual aromas and unique flavours are what you seek from a whisky, then single casks are the place to find them. While everyone who appreciates a whisky enjoys the fruity esters that distillers seek to amplify, and the softening sweetness imparted by oak, seasoned drammers may relish the road less travelled. Their eyes light up to the smell of sweaty leather or burlap sacks or birthday candles. Dedicated distillers may cringe, but these weird and wacky side notes are the domain of enthusiasts. Many of AD Rattray's single cask selections cater to the curious and the value of intrigue over perfection, in contrast to the more typical, marketable flavours we associate with malt whisky. For an independent bottler, the quantities involved in a single cask make releasing whiskies that may be deemed out of character much less of a risk. It would be a brave decision for any major distillery to release a batch product of many thousands of cases of anything exhibiting flavours that some consider to be “off” notes. In stock evaluations at A. D. Rattray, they often note casks as “flawless” - a technical assessment of quality, but on its own, not necessarily the high praise it seems. Everything is there, but where is the hook? Can a whisky be too balanced? In fact, it's not unusual for Rattray to overlook casks that simply aren’t interesting enough, rather than reject them for exhibiting any peculiar notes. For drinkers who share their passion, the real beauty in single malt scotch whisky lies in the anomalies and imperfections found in a single cask.