Clynelish 10 Years Old 2008 Artist Collective #2.7 (LMDW)

A 10 year old Clynelish from the Paris house La Maison du Whisky, distilled in 2008, bottled at 43%. Clynelish is a waxy, citrussy Highland single malt from the village of Brora. Its waxy character, a candle wax and beeswax texture, is prized above almost any other by blenders.

It was made in copper stills for a coastal, waxy make, building the cult Clynelish waxiness. It was matured in refill ex-Bourbon oak, vanilla and honey behind the wax. In integration lactones (coconut) and vanillin (vanilla) knit with the wax, lemon deepening to candied orange. Active wood frames the citrus without smothering the waxy texture. The unpeated make leans on texture and citrus, the cask adding depth. Clynelish sits on the North Sea coast at Brora, in the far north east of the Highlands. The lost Brora distillery beside it, closed in 1983, was revived by Diageo in 2021. The clean, oily spirit shows the cask clearly, vanilla and honey over the wax.

At an approachable 43% it is balanced. Candle wax, lemon and a coastal salt, with a soft vanilla from the oak. The mouthfeel is oily, the citrus carried on a waxy body. A long, oily finish ends on lemon and beeswax. This is the cult waxy malt of Brora.