The 2004 vintage from The Balvenie DCS Compendium Chapter 3 is a 13-year-old single cask from a European oak oloroso sherry butt, bottled at 58.2% ABV. It was chosen by malt master David C. Stewart MBE to mark his 30th year in the role.
About This Whisky
The DCS Compendium was a five-chapter series released from 2015 to 2019, each chapter made up of five single casks from different decades. Chapter 3, released in 2017, carried the theme 'Secrets of the Stock Model' and showed how Stewart manages maturing stock. The 2004 cask, #741, is a European oak oloroso sherry butt filled on 19 January 2004 and bottled at 13 years old. Stewart picked 2004 because it was his 30th year as malt master and the year The Balvenie Thirty was introduced. The same chapter included a 1961 cask, then the oldest Balvenie released.
Tasting Profile
- Nose: Rich, with some orange peel against balanced oak tannins.
- Palate: Silky mouthfeel, dark fruits and sherry characteristics. Subtle and spicy.
- Finish: Luxurious and honeyed with delicate spices and oak.
Serving & Food
Serve unchilled, neat, in a nosing glass. At 58.2% it takes water well; add it slowly and taste as you go. Pair with Christmas pudding, a board of aged Parmigiano and walnuts, or a sticky toffee dessert.
How to Enjoy
Balvenie followers collecting the DCS Compendium, and anyone who likes a young, full-strength sherry-cask Speyside malt.
Product Details
Distillery: The Balvenie
Series: DCS Compendium, Chapter 3
Age: 13 years old
Vintage: 2004 (filled 19 January 2004)
Cask: European oak oloroso sherry butt #741
ABV: 58.2%
Category: Speyside single malt Scotch whisky
Region: Speyside
Volume: 700mL
About the Distillery
William Grant founded The Balvenie in Dufftown in 1892, converting an 18th-century mansion, and the first spirit ran on 1 May 1893. It is still owned by William Grant & Sons.
The distillery grows some of its own barley, keeps a traditional malting floor, and employs its own coppersmith and coopers on site. David C. Stewart joined the company in 1962 and pioneered cask finishing, moving whisky from one cask type into another to add depth.