GlenAllachie 12 yo Moscatel Wood Finish

Volume: 0.7 litres | Alcohol content: 48% | Chill filtration: No | Colouring: No

Special Features:

Portuguese Moscatel barriques lend this GlenAllachie from the Wood Finish series its distinctive wine influence. The single malt first matured for more than eight years in American oak ex-bourbon barrels. It then spent over three and a half further years in selected casks that had previously held the aromatic Portuguese dessert wine Moscatel. This finishing period combines floral notes with a silky-soft texture, tart fruit and toffee sweetness.

This 12-year-old bottling was released in August 2023 as the European edition of the Regional Exclusive range. Billy Walker selected the casks and monitored maturation through regular checks in the distillery’s 16 warehouses. Only afterwards were the whiskies from the selected casks married together. Grapefruit peel, honeysuckle, grape must and poached pear also contribute to its fresh, fragrant character. The golden-bronze whisky is bottled at 48% without added colouring or chill filtration.

Tasting Notes:

• Nose: On the nose, orange blossom and heather honey mingle with citrus notes. Grapefruit, buttery caramel and toffee add to the bouquet.
• Palate: The palate opens with hints of dark chocolate, grape must and plum jam. These are followed by orchard fruit, cinnamon and honeycomb.
• Finish: Ginger and buttery caramel linger on the finish.

Distillery/Bottler:

The Speyside distillery GlenAllachie was built in 1967 to designs by William Delmé-Evans and began production in 1968. Its layout relied largely on gravity for transfers during the production process to save energy. For many years, it supplied whisky for blends. Its acquisition by Billy Walker, Trisha Savage and Graham Stevenson in 2017 marked the start of a new chapter; its first single malt core range followed in 2018.

Today, production includes a 160-hour fermentation in eight stainless steel vessels, allowing esters and other aroma compounds to develop. Double distillation follows. When sourcing casks, Billy Walker works with small, specialist producers. During maturation, the team continually assesses how the whisky is developing and whether a change of cask type would be beneficial. This combination of targeted cask selection and monitored maturation also underpins the Regional Exclusive bottlings.

Facts: