This is Rare Find’s first release from Craigellachie, a distillery known for a weighty and characterful style. After its initial maturation, this 11-year-old single malt has been amplified further in a 1st fill oloroso sherry hogshead. This finish builds on the spirit’s natural quality with layers of dried fruit, baking spice, toffee and dark chocolate. The result is rich and full, with the oloroso sherry cask amplifying the whisky’s depth and carrying a measured sweetness into the long, gently spiced finish.
Tasting notes
Sherried
Spiced
Nose
Aromas of baking spices, raisins, cigar leaf and toffee.
Palate
A complex palate with flavours of dark chocolate, prunes, caramel and breakfast tea.
Finish
Long with gentle nutmeg spice and dark chocolate.
The distillery
Craigellachie
Established in 1891 by Alexander Edward and Peter Mackie, Craigellachie Distillery is located near the confluence of the Rivers Spey and Fiddich in Speyside. Designed by architect Charles Doig, the distillery was established to supply whisky to the White Horse blend.
Today, it forms part of John Dewar & Sons, the whisky division of Bacardi. Craigellachie remains distinctive for its traditional worm tub condensers, a production method retained by a small number of Scottish distilleries. This approach helps create a full-bodied and characterful spirit.
The unpeated whisky is known for its tropical fruit character, with notes of pineapple often cited as a hallmark of the distillery style. Alongside this fruit-forward character is a subtle sulphury edge that forms part of the distillery's distinctive style, contributing additional savoury complexity to the spirit.We feel this combination of tropical fruit and structure makes Craigellachie suited to extended maturation in refill
casks.
The Speyside whisky producing region, centred on the River Spey, is home to the greatest concentration of whisky distilleries in the world. The region benefits from abundant water sources, a long-standing whisky making tradition and favourable conditions for maturation.
More than fifty distilleries operate throughout the region, producing a wide variety of single malt whiskies. While styles vary between distilleries, Speyside whiskies are often associated with approachable, fruit driven flavour profiles. The region also has a longstanding association with sherry cask maturation, which contributes to the diversity of styles found.
We seek Speyside whisky for its exceptional diversity. From delicate and floral spirits to richer, more robust styles, the region offers a broad spectrum of character that responds well to a variety of maturation approaches. Many of the region's richer spirits are particularly well suited to long term maturation, developing depth and complexity with age.
Customer reviews
Full specification
Category
Single malt Scotch whisky
Distillery
Craigellachie
Region
Speyside
Country
Scotland
Age
11 years
Distilled
20 February 2014
Bottled
2025
Strength
54.1% ABV
Bottle size
70 cl
Original outturn
145 bottles
Cask number
82
Cask
1st Fill Oloroso Sherry Hogshead
More to explore
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