Clynelish 15 Years Old 2009 Cask #307223 (Connoisseurs Choice)

The Elgin house Gordon and MacPhail bottled this Clynelish, a 15 year old, distilled in 2009, from cask 307223, bottled at 57.7%, one of 249 bottles. Clynelish stands on the North Sea coast at Brora, the modern neighbour of the lost Brora distillery. The distillery was built in 1967 next to the original Clynelish of 1819, which was renamed Brora and later closed.

Worked through the tall stills for a citrussy, oily spirit, giving the oily, candle wax character Clynelish is prized for. A sherry cask wrapped the waxy spirit in dried fruit and a nutty depth. At oxidative maturity aldehydes and esters lend tropical fruit while ellagitannins add a drying grip to the waxy malt. 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.

At cask strength 57.7% it is full bodied. The famous wax over lemon and orange, with dried fruit, fig and walnut from the cask. It is waxy and citrussy, the oily spirit shining through. Citrus, wax and a faint brine see out the finish. This is the famously waxy Highland malt of Clynelish.