Wick's salty old dog
7. Old Pulteney (12yo, 40%)
Old Pulteney has a lot to commend it as a distillery worth (virtually) visiting, being the northernmost distillery on the Scottish mainland. You find it in the blustery port of Wick, once famed for the quantity and quality of the herring landed there.
Much has changed since then as you'd expect but the whisky is still made using the same traditional methods as it was when the distillery first opened in 1826 - the same year the American Temperance Society was founded, incidentally, and the same year that matches were invented.
The distillery closed between 1930 and 1951 thanks to locally enforced prohibition laws, but has been in constant production apart from that. It's now owned by Inver House Distillers.
Anyway, Old Pulteney - or at least the marketing team - make a big deal out of the distillery's curious copper wash still that lacks the swan neck that usually typifies these things. Legend has it that when the still was delivered it was too big to fit in the still house so the manager just hacked the top off it, as you would yourself. The quirky shape that remains has come to be known as the 'smuggler's kettle' and is reflected in the shape of the bottle itself these days.
Nice little marketing touch, but the shape of the still obviously affects the flavour of the whisky which is another matter entirely.
Tasting notes, after a fashion:
Described enthusiastically and regularly as "The Maritime Malt", you kind of know what to expect with this one. Matured in ex-bourbon casks battered by the sea breeze for well over a decade, the 12 year old whisky has a unique character that is, to my mind at least, an acquired taste.
On the nose it's salty but in a very savoury way that to my nose is far less layered and engaging than say a 10yo Laphroaig or a lumping Ardbeg. I can't quite put my finger / nose on it, but there's an unpleasant damp, musty flaccid quality that I just can't grow to love. (I'm near the end of this 70cl bottle and god knows I've tried...)
Neat, it's a curious beast in the mouth too. Very dry and with a spiciness that stumbles between clumsy and enticing, it's not unlike sucking a piece of wood - maybe a bit of one of those bourbon barrels? The 'maritime' character is there in spades but again a saltiness that I don't find as pleasant as the one you find in many other coastal malts.
A tiny splash of water softens the nose immensely, taking off most of the rougher edges and bringing out a tiny bit of green apple crispness that was lacking before. In the mouth though the water just makes the malt flabby and soft. Some toffee apple sweetness appearing, but try as I might I just can't take you to my
heart, Old Pulteney.
2/5
 |
| It's the 'smuggler's kettle' still that makes all the difference. Allegedly. |
Much has changed since then as you'd expect but the whisky is still made using the same traditional methods as it was when the distillery first opened in 1826 - the same year the American Temperance Society was founded, incidentally, and the same year that matches were invented.
The distillery closed between 1930 and 1951 thanks to locally enforced prohibition laws, but has been in constant production apart from that. It's now owned by Inver House Distillers.
Anyway, Old Pulteney - or at least the marketing team - make a big deal out of the distillery's curious copper wash still that lacks the swan neck that usually typifies these things. Legend has it that when the still was delivered it was too big to fit in the still house so the manager just hacked the top off it, as you would yourself. The quirky shape that remains has come to be known as the 'smuggler's kettle' and is reflected in the shape of the bottle itself these days.
Nice little marketing touch, but the shape of the still obviously affects the flavour of the whisky which is another matter entirely.
Tasting notes, after a fashion:
Described enthusiastically and regularly as "The Maritime Malt", you kind of know what to expect with this one. Matured in ex-bourbon casks battered by the sea breeze for well over a decade, the 12 year old whisky has a unique character that is, to my mind at least, an acquired taste.
On the nose it's salty but in a very savoury way that to my nose is far less layered and engaging than say a 10yo Laphroaig or a lumping Ardbeg. I can't quite put my finger / nose on it, but there's an unpleasant damp, musty flaccid quality that I just can't grow to love. (I'm near the end of this 70cl bottle and god knows I've tried...)
Neat, it's a curious beast in the mouth too. Very dry and with a spiciness that stumbles between clumsy and enticing, it's not unlike sucking a piece of wood - maybe a bit of one of those bourbon barrels? The 'maritime' character is there in spades but again a saltiness that I don't find as pleasant as the one you find in many other coastal malts.A tiny splash of water softens the nose immensely, taking off most of the rougher edges and bringing out a tiny bit of green apple crispness that was lacking before. In the mouth though the water just makes the malt flabby and soft. Some toffee apple sweetness appearing, but try as I might I just can't take you to my
heart, Old Pulteney.
2/5
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