Thirty-two bottles, one for every piece on a chessboard. That is how The Chess Malt Collection is built, and each bottling carries a square name. D7 is a pawn’s starting square, and behind that particular piece sits a refill hogshead of Glenburgie from February 1998.
The expert's description
Glenburgie 23 Year Old The Chess Malt Collection D7 is a Speyside Single Malt Scotch Whisky from a refill hogshead, bottled at 54% in 238 bottles.
The cask was filled in February 1998 and emptied in October 2021 after twenty-three years. A refill hogshead gives slowly, and over that length of time the result is a whisky where the distillery takes up more room than the wood. The bottling is non-chill filtered and carries natural colour.
The series consists of thirty-two different bottlings from different distilleries, split evenly between black and white: two kings, two queens, four bishops, four knights, four rooks and sixteen pawns. It is a collecting project as much as a whisky range, and several of the squares are already hard to find.
Tasting notes
Nose
Tropical fruit and old oak, with pineapple, mango and a trace of wax. There is a light smoky note under the fruit and a nuttiness that twenty-three years has laid in.
Palate
Full and oily. Tropical fruit and nuts first, then a dry, lightly smoky edge and a firm spiced middle. The 54% gives the whisky weight without hiding the age.
Finish
Long. Nuts, dry oak and a final wisp of smoke that lingers well after the fruit has gone.
Specifications
Name: Glenburgie 23 Year Old The Chess Malt Collection D7 Speyside Single Malt Whisky 54%
Distillery: Glenburgie
Bottler: The Chess Malt Collection
Region/Country: Speyside, Scotland
Type: Speyside Single Malt Scotch Whisky
Age: 23 years
ABV: 54%
Size: 70 CL
Cask type: Refill hogshead
Non-chill filtered: Yes
Natural colour: Yes
Distilled: February 1998
Bottled: October 2021
Number of bottles: 238
Edition: The Chess Malt Collection D7
Flavour profile
Tropical · Nutty · Lightly smoky · Waxy · Cask Strength
Investment potential
Medium. A twenty-three year old Glenburgie in 238 bottles cannot be repeated, and the bottling forms part of a series of thirty-two that is collected as a whole. That series structure means demand comes not only from whisky drinkers but also from those chasing the missing squares.
Did you know?
In 1958 Glenburgie had two Lomond stills fitted, producing a heavier spirit under the name Glencraig. It was intended for blending, and very little has ever been bottled as single malt. The stills were removed again in 1981.
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