Description
A 35 year old Banff whisky. Bottled by Douglas Taylor as part of their Rarest of the Rare series. Distilled in November 1975, it was then aged in a cask number 3352, before being bottled in April 2011. A run of just 260 bottles, this is bottle number 54.
Although the Banff distillery had dealt with fires and explosions in the past, a particularly bad fire damaged or destroyed much of the distillery apart from the warehouse on 9 May 1877. By October of the same year, Simpson had rebuilt the distillery and restored operation. On 16 August 1941, a Nazi Junkers Ju 88 attacked the Banff distillery and destroyed warehouse No. 12. Many whisky casks burned and a great deal of stock was lost. Farmers reported that the whisky had run into nearby water supplies and intoxicated the local animal population. After World War II ended, renovation on the Banff distillery began with the intent of restoring it to operation. While one of the stills was being repaired by a coppersmith on 3 October 1959, vapors inside were ignited and caused an explosion that destroyed the still and damaged part of the distillery. When renovation was finally complete, the distillery returned to operating status and continued to produce whisky until it was finally mothballed in 1983. By the late 1980s, most of the distillery’s buildings had been dismantled or demolished. The last warehouse was destroyed in a fire on 11 April 1991.
Colour: Straw.
Nose:
Light honey and all kinds of fresh fruits (oranges, apples). Delicate oakiness and quite some hay. Faint hints of musk and a little praline.
Taste:
Starting more on spices, mustard seeds, pepper as well as these green apples and fresh walnuts. Un-sugared coffee. Excellent oakiness (apple peel, almond skin) and something slightly perfumy in the background (orange blossom water).
Finish:
A tad more drying, with more tannins but the whole is excellent again.
