Single Malt 1st Fill Sherry Hogshead 'Full Cask' No 180000039
⏳ Drinking Window
As a distilled spirit, this bottle will remain stable indefinitely if stored upright and away from direct sunlight; once opened, it is best enjoyed within 1 to 3 years.
🍽️ Food & Wine Pairings
Dark chocolate tart, roasted venison with a berry reduction, mature Stilton cheese
✨ Technical Specifications
Craigellachie is famously known as the 'bad boy of Speyside' due to its stubborn adherence to traditional, heavy-style whisky making. Established in 1891, the distillery continues to use traditional copper worm tubs to condense its spirit. This process limits copper contact, leaving a robust, meaty, and sulfurous character in the new-make spirit. When matured in a first-fill Sherry Hogshead, like this specific single cask, the spirit undergoes a dramatic transformation. The active sherry-seasoned European oak imparts deep layers of dark chocolate, rich dried fruits, and warming baking spices, which beautifully contrast with Craigellachie's signature tropical pineapple and flinty, struck-match notes. This single cask bottling captures a pure, unadulterated moment in the distillery's maturation history, offering a muscular and unapologetically complex dram.
🍾 About the Producer
Established in 1891 by whisky pioneers Peter Mackie and Alexander Edward, Craigellachie Distillery commands a prominent position on a rocky outcrop overlooking the confluence of the Rivers Spey and Fiddich. Designed by renowned Victorian architect Charles Doig, the distillery purposely eschews contemporary distillation trends, championing an archaic, full-bodied spirit style. Drawing soft processing water from the nearby Blue Hill, the distillery employs oil-fired maltings, traditional wooden washbacks, and distinctive exterior copper worm tub condensers. By restricting copper-to-vapor contact during condensation, Craigellachie captures robust, heavy, and sulphurous aromatic compounds that evolve into a uniquely muscular single malt marked by savoury, meaty notes accented by luscious tropical pineapple. Under parent owner Bacardi (John Dewar & Sons) and multi-award-winning Malt Master Stephanie Macleod, the distillery balances its legacy role in premium blends with benchmark age-stated single malts—notably its core 13-Year-Old, 17-Year-Old, and rare vintage cask bottlings—all presented non-chill-filtered at natural strength.
🍇 Base Material
Malted Barley