GreatDrams Deanston 11 Year Old

Key Facts About This Single Malt

Bottler: GreatDrams

Range: Single Cask Series

Founders: Greg and Kirsty Dillon

Distillery: Deanston

Region: Highlands, Scotland

Age: 11 years old

Distilled: September 2009

Bottled: October 2021

Cask type: A single ex-bourbon cask

Alcohol by Volume: 48.2%

Bottled: Natural colour and without chill filtration

Outturn: 200 bottles

Bottle Size: 500ml

Deanston 11 Year Old Tasting Notes

Nose: Bright and inviting, with classic bourbon cask notes of vanilla pod, honeycomb, and soft caramel leading the way. Deanston’s waxy spirit character sits underneath, bringing hints of malted barley, baked apple, and citrus zest. Gentle floral notes and toasted coconut emerge with time in the glass, alongside a touch of buttery shortbread and light oak spice.

Palate: Creamy and well-balanced, opening with vanilla fudge, golden syrup, and ripe orchard fruits. Layers of honeyed malt and sweet cereal notes are complemented by subtle oak influence, adding flavours of toasted almonds, crème brûlée, and soft baking spice. The texture is oily and mouthcoating, with Deanston’s naturally weighty spirit carrying the bourbon cask influence particularly well.

Finish: Medium to long, smooth and warming, with lingering vanilla cream, gentle oak spice, and a soft waxy malt character. Hints of citrus peel and sweet barley remain right through the finish.

Overall: A classic bourbon-matured Deanston that showcases the distillery’s rich, textured spirit style with clarity and balance. Elegant rather than overly cask-driven, allowing the creamy, honeyed Highland character to remain at the forefront.

About This GreatDrams whisky

Deanston is one of the greenest distilleries in Scotland. Expect notes of smooth, silky vanilla intertwined with subtle fruits, spicy honey and a creamy mouthfeel too from this excellent release by GreatDrams.

The Deanston Distillery is located on the site of an old cotton mill in the Highlands of Scotland. It operated from 1785 until 1966 as the demise of the cotton trade heralded the site being converted into a distillery and production of single malt whisky starts. The design of the still room means that the four unique pot stills and their upwards-sloping lyne arms and boiling balls help give the whisky its light character.

Deanston is one of the greenest distilleries in Scotland. Its power is generated by a turbine house which processes up to 20 million litres of water an hour. Any excess electricity is sold to the National Grid, making it the only self-sustaining distillery in Scotland for electricity.

Producing 3 million litres of spirit a year, and maturing 35,000 casks on-site in dunnage and racking warehousing, Deanston uses only Scottish-grown barley. In 2000 it was one of the first distilleries in Scotland to start producing organic whisky.