Distillery Dive: Orcadian Elegance

Distillery Dive #4: Orcadian Elegance offers decadent aromas and flavours of sea, smoke and sherry! Whilst most Society members are quite familiar with the peaty potential of distillery 4 releases, let’s look at the dazzling effects of sherry cask maturation in two 19-year-old expressions!

The single malts featured here were distilled on August 20^th, 2001. After 17 years of aging in ex-Oloroso butts, they were each transferred to a different sherry cask for 2 years of additional maturation. The resultant whiskies will transport your senses across the Atlantic to Scotland and Spain! Cask No. 4.292 Peat fire tales was aged in a first-fill Pedro Ximenez butt and displays a balanced union of maritime salinity and sherry sweetness. The heather-honey peat of Orkney shines through on a palate of chocolate, citrus and exotic herbs. Cask No. 4.293 A cunning combo was aged in a second-fill Spanish oak Oloroso butt that previously contained a stunning whisky from distillery 29! Dessert is served with this delicious dram – dark chocolate, figs, maple syrup and crepes flambéed in Grand Marnier are just a few of the aromas and flavours picked up by our Tasting Panel. These whiskies exhibit entertainingly different styles of peat and sherry influence!

If ordered separately: Cask No. 4.292= $295; Cask No. 4.293= $345. 

Cask No. 4.292 - Peat fire tales
Date distilled: August 2001
Cask: First-fill Pedro Ximenez butt
Age: 19 years
Alcohol: 59.4%
Region: Highland Island

Cask No. 4.293 - A cunning combo
Date distilled: August 2001
Cask: Second-fill ex-Islay Oloroso butt
Age: 19 years
Alcohol: 58.9%
Region: Highland Island