Edradour Small Batch

Edradour with an Italian Barbaresco twist

One day I would like to do an in depth piece on Edradour, since a lot has happened at the distillery in the last 7 or so years. For starters, owner Andrew Symington of Signatory fame, actually built a practically whole new distillery next to the original one. We have seen this trick before in the past in the Scotch whisky industry, with examples like Glendullan A and B, Linkwood, Teaninch, all doing this expansion. Famously, only at Clynelish this ‘A and B’ business was not accepted, when the old distillery was totally rebuild next door. With bigger stills than at the original distillery, it arguably did change in nature. The owner solved it by renaming the old distillery to Brora, that produced a peated spirit anyway, and that was that. 

Edradour expanded production and one could indeed say there is enough market for the whisky. Tourists may well know the distillery because it was always easy to reach, just off the A9 (where you could combine your visit with the other distillery in Pitlochry – Blair Athol). Just browsing through the Malt Whisky Yearbook, I understand that Edradour did not restart the visitor facilities after shutting down during the pandemic. That is very sad, since Edradour is a sight to see, if only for a very unique piece of equipment called the Morton Refrigerator. Luckily, I caught it live when I visited the distillery in 2006. Yeah, that is quite some time ago. Today’s whisky on the table was not even distilled then… let’s get to it!

Edradour Small Batch, 12 years old, bottled at 48,2 % abv

First things first: Barbaresco is considered to be one of the best red wines from Italy, coming from the Piemonte regio. The wine is exclusively made from the Nebbiolo grape. Only 2921 bottles were taken from casks 51 to 58 of the year 2011. Distillation in March 2011, bottled in July 2023. 

Upon Sipping: Oh, how deliciously weird Edradour can be! Damp earth, mushrooms and a weird sweetness from a not so unattractive cough syrup. Lots of berries, overripe ones, hanging on the bush. The dark, dry wine is undeniable on the nose, but it makes for something you do not sniff every day. The taste starts out very sweet and juicy, like taking a bite from a rum soaked wet cake. On repeated sipping the dry mouthfeel does get bothersome, but just a bit. It is a red wine cask after all. With water, some rubbery roughness comes out, but it all stays well within limits. 

Word to the Wise: This was not just some table wine cask that was used. The difference is noticeable from the start. The funkiness of Edradour almost neutralizes the weirdness of the cask, and then makes for something really unique. A very interesting whisky, that delivers a lot of fun.

Score: 84 points.