Caledonian The Cally 40 Years Old Limited Release 2015 53,3% Vol. 0,7l in Giftbox

This limited-edition single grain whisky is a very rare treat: it is an official bottling from the extremely elusive Caledonian distillery, which closed in 1988. 

Caledonian The Cally 40 Years Old 1974 matured for 40 years in refill American oak hogsheads, and was bottled in 2015 as part of that year’s Diageo Special Releases. 

The release is nicknamed ‘The Cally’ after the employees’ nickname for the distillery. 

The whisky has aromas of coconut, toffee popcorn, grilled pineapple and honeycomb on the nose. The palate is toasty and oaky with bitter caramel, warming wood spices, dates and cinnamon. Creamy vanilla takes centre stage on the finish. 

The Caledonian distillery in Edinburgh was built in 1855 by Graham Menzies & Co. 

The distillery housed a Coffey still as well as two large pot stills to produce an Irish-style grain whisky, which was in high demand among blenders at the time for its consistency.

Caledonian was one of the largest distilleries of its time. 

At its peak it had 200 employees, and by 1895 the distillery was responsible for about 10% of all the whisky produced in Scotland. In 1884, Caledonian became part of Distillers Company Ltd. and in 1966 it was transferred to Scottish Grain Distillers. 

Caledonian ultimately closed in 1988 following mass consolidation by then-owners United Distillers. 

Caledonian produced grain whisky solely for blends and is therefore very rarely seen as a single grain. In recent years there have been a couple of independent bottlings, but as for official single grains there have only been two so far: a commemorative bottling for the 1986 Commonwealth Games in Edinburgh, and this one for the 2015 Diageo Special Releases.

Distilled: 1974
Bottled: 2015

Colour: Amber.
Nose: sweet, fruity, fresh, melons, orange peel, vanilla.
Taste: Fresh, sweet, oily, chocolate, vanilla, cocoa.
Finish: Long lasting, complex, oily, dry, dark chocolate, oak.