Clynelish 13 Years Old 1983 Cask #1268 (Signatory)

A 13 year old Clynelish from the Pitlochry bottler Signatory Vintage, distilled in 1983, from cask 1268, bottled at 43%, one of 760 bottles. Clynelish is the coastal Highland malt whose waxiness has made it a cult favourite. A coastal maturation lends a faint brine to the waxy, oily spirit.

The spirit was worked through the tall stills for a citrussy, oily spirit, for an oily, lemony make with a savoury edge. First fill bourbon gave a fuller vanilla over the oily spirit. By the integrating teens congeners fade and esters build, the waxy, oily spirit growing rounder. Long ageing turns the fresh lemon towards candied orange, beeswax and tropical fruit. The wax sits at the heart of the spirit, the cask building fruit and honey around it. Clynelish sits on the North Sea coast at Brora, in the far north east of the Highlands. The unpeated make leans on texture and citrus, the cask adding depth.

Reduced to 43%, it is supple. Beeswax, honey and a coastal freshness, with a soft vanilla from the oak. Orange, beeswax and a maritime salt fill the middle. The finish runs waxy, coastal and clean. This is an oily, maritime Highland single malt.