Whisky review: Speyburn 10

Speyburn is a Speyside distillery, built on the site of an old gallows in the town of Rothes along with Glen Grant, Glenrothes, and Glen Spey. It was the first distillery to use drum maltings, in which the malt is dried in a rotating metal drum instead of on a perforated floor (the floor maltings are the traditional way of doing it, but require a lot of labor).

Speyburn is owned by the same company that owns the Pulteney, Balblair and Knockdhu distilleries, Inver House. However, they do not normally market Speyburn nearly as heavily as they do the other three. I'm not sure why, but I have a feeling they have Speyburn for blending.

Speyburn 10, 43% ABV

Single malt Scotch whisky (Speyside)

Nose: Very floral and sweet with a bit of a toasty characteristic.

Palate: Citrus (green apple, orange, lemon) followed by a bit of earthiness.

Finish: Citrus and some malt.

Rating (of 100): 86. This is not a very complex whisky but it is extremely drinkable and, at about $20/bottle, it's a great deal.