Balmenach 1977-1996 - 18 Year Old - Blackadder - Single Cask 6406

Balmenach distillery was founded in Speyside in 1824. The distillery joined Diageo forerunner DCL’s portfolio in 1925 and was expanded to six stills in 1962. Balmenach was acquired in 1997 by Inver House Distillers, who are now owned by Thai Beverages plc. Balmenach is one of only a few distilleries still using worm tubs to condense their spirit and the resulting muscular, meaty whisky is in high demand from blenders.

Balmenach’s importance as a blending malt means official bottlings are thin on the ground. United Distillers bottled Balmenach 12-year-old for the Flora & Fauna series; Inver House released a handful of limited editions, the last of which was in 2002. Independent Balmenach is relatively common, with some classic old bottlings by Gordon & MacPhail, the SMWS, Signatory, Cadenhead’s and the Italian bottler Sestante among others.

Blackadder International is an independent whisky bottler founded in 1995 by John Lamond and Robin Tucek, authors of the seminal whisky book The Malt Whisky File, originally published in 1987. Lamond stepped down in 2001 and the company is now run by Tucek and his children Hannah and Michael. Blackadder’s Raw Cask range famously includes harmless cask sediment added to each bottle - a practice that raises eyebrows and attracts fans in equal measure.

Mild controversies aside, Blackadder International deserve a lot of credit for helping popularise cask strength whisky in the 1990s and for eschewing artificial colouring and chill filtration long before it was fashionable to do so. Blackadder’s hugely impressive back catalogue now stands at well over 1500 whiskies and includes sensational drams from distilleries including Longmorn, Springbank and Highland Park - a testament to the success of the company’s old school approach.