Speyside Distillery 9 Year Old 2015 Blackadder Raw Cask Single Virgin Oak Cask #10087 30th Anniversary Edition Speyside Single Malt Scotch Whisky (2025) 70cl
1 of 254 bottles produced from a single virgin oak cask which is uncommon in Scotland.
Blackadder are a family owned independent whisky bottler established in 1995 by Robin Tucek who now runs the business with his son, Michael, and daughter, Hannah. Initially a whisky bottler, they have since developed their range to include other spirits, including rum and gin. They are most notable for not filtering the whisky where some of the bottles may have cask sediment left over which for a lot of whisky drinkers, is mega attractive. Certainly is for us. After all, wood is just carbohydrate anyway.
TASTING NOTES
This Speyside single malt has been matured in virgin oak casks, allowing the influence of fresh oak to bring vibrant flavours to the whisky.
Virgin oak maturation adds notes of vanilla, toasted wood and warm spice while maintaining the fruity elegance typical of Speyside whisky.
About The Speyside Distillery
The distillery, one of the most southerly of the Speyside triangle, is located close to the town of Kingussie and has been a quiet player in the world of single malt.
A small site, it has a pair of stills which were originally installed in the Lochside distillery but were cut down to size in order to fit into their new surroundings.
The whisky-making process here is taken at a relaxed pace. Ferments are long; distillation slow. The result is a light style.
Virtually unseen as a single malt – it has appeared under the Drumguish and Glentromie labels and is the liquid in the Loch Dhu ‘homage’ Cu Dubh – the distillery’s whisky is still further travelled than many of its compatriots. The mature spirit has appeared, incognito, in blends across Asia, has been launched in Mongolia, is a single malt range (called ‘Spey’) in Taiwan, and has been added to neutral spirit to produce Bhutanese whisky.
The idea of a single malt distillery came to industry legend George Christie in the 1950s. Prior to the construction of Speyside he had built the North of Scotland grain plant in Clackmannan, (some of the remaining casks are being eked out under the Scott’s Selection label owned by George’s son Ricky). It would take 30 years for his Speyside dream to become reality.
In 2013 the distillery and the firm was bought by Harvey's of Edinburgh with Taiwanese backing.
About Blackadder
Blackadder’s philosophy is very simple – they believe that the Cask is King. Sixty to seventy percent of the flavors in a whisky are taken up slowly from the cask as the spirit lies maturing in the warehouse. The action of changing temperature draws the spirit in and out of the cask.
A family operation started and piloted by whisky legend Robin Tucek, they sell to a few limited countries around the world, primarily Tiawan, Japan, the USA and Sweden.
Blackadder was established in 1995 by Robin Tucek who runs the family business with his daughter Hannah and son Michael. Blackadder International gets its name from fugitive 17th-century preacher, John Blackadder. He is famous for preaching against the evils of alcohol.
Hannah Tucek states that the Blackadder International company will always be family-run. Each of the three owner-operators brings something unique to the table. Michael Tucek used to be a chef. He uses his familiarity with a wide range of aromas and flavours to write all tasting notes. Michael feels that “our sense of smell is the most direct sense to our brain and also our most complex. It’s proven that once you go over three aroma compounds mixed together, everything is subjective and becomes very personal. Every aroma can evoke a different memory in each of us and we build up our aroma library as we grow. By not being afraid to say what we sense and share it, we can all learn something from each other.” Like Michael, Hannah grew up around whisky and has come to appreciate whisky at its pure state. Her father and brother joke that she is the one that’s really in charge.
Every cask is unique, with its own fingerprint. This is why they bottle most of their whiskies from single casks. They don’t believe in chilling or otherwise heavily filtering their whiskies, and they never, repeat never, add caramel colouring or flavouring to their spirits. They have always believed the personalities of their whiskies are colourful enough. Their raw cask is famous for the barrel char in each bottle.
59.3% ABV
70cl
