Whisky Review: Edradour 10 Year

Edradour is, to put it mildly, an odd duck. One of the smallest distilleries in Scotland (though the growth of craft distillers has changed the playing field), it is owned by the independent bottler Signatory. They produce both unpeated (Edradour) and peated (Ballechin) whisky, with fairly small core ranges supplemented by a dazzling array of limited editions and one-offs that would almost make Reynier-era Bruichladdich blush.

This whisky was aged in a mixture of ex-bourbon and ex-sherry casks, then bottled at 40% with chill filtration and (maybe?) coloring.

I purchased this sample from The Whisky Exchange in 2012.

Edradour 10 Year

Nose: an odd mix of malt, sherry, and putty, some creamy vanilla and dunnage funk, apples/apple cider vinegar and floral notes in the background, with some bourbon barrel notes emerging after more time in the glass. After adding a few drops of water some new make notes come out, the peat become stronger, and the sherry isn't as strong.

Taste: opens with sherry sweetness and light baking spices that slowly transform into clean malt and apple cider vinegar, then light peat emerging at the back, with gentle oak tannins a constant presence in the background. After dilution the flavors are more integrated and have less evolution, but feel like a more coherent whole.

Finish: peat-y funk, green malt, a little oak and sherry residue

Given all of the very mixed reviews this malt has received in the past, I'm honestly unsure whether the mini has gone bad or if this is just what they were putting out at the time. There are bits and pieces that click for me, but taken as a whole it feels like a real mess. In that respect it reminds me a bit of Bruichladdich - some odd funk, sherry that doesn't quite fit, but a profile that I really want to like. I'd be interested in trying a sample of the 43% version from a full bottle, but I can't see myself springing for more than that right now.