Old Pulteney 17 Years Old (46%)

A distillery bottling of Old Pulteney at 17 year old, and bottled at 46%. Old Pulteney was opened in 1826 at Wick, on the windswept northeast coast; it stands among Scotland's most northerly distilleries. Robert Cumming brought the distillery back to life in 1951 after two decades silent.

It was run through the unusual stills, the wash still topped flat where the swan neck was cut, before resting in warehouses within sight of the harbour. A refill American oak cask held it, keeping the maritime malt to the fore. By this age the waxy, honeyed core settles in over the brine. Sea air works through the warehouse, lending a saline thread as the whisky breathes by the shore. A faint salinity threads the honey, the mark of long coastal maturation. Sir William Pulteney gave his name to the planned town that grew around the harbour. The spirit carries an oily weight unusual among Highland malts.

At an easy 46% it is gentle. A gentle vanilla and coconut from the wood, with sea salt and a coastal tang. The mouthfeel is oily, the honey carried on a waxy body. Sea salt and honey see out a long finish. This is a honeyed coastal malt from Caithness.