Clynelish 21 Years Old 1996 Cask #8793 (van Wees)

A 21 year old Clynelish from the Dutch bottler van Wees, distilled in 1996, from cask 8793, bottled at 46%, one of 623 bottles. Clynelish, on the Sutherland coast, makes one of the most distinctive textures in Scotch, its famous wax. Clynelish sits on the North Sea coast at Brora, in the far north east of the Highlands.

Worked through the tall stills for a citrussy, oily spirit, for a maritime spirit with a beeswax richness. Ex-Sherry wood added a dried fruit richness to the waxy spirit. Through oxidative maturity esters concentrate, lemon turning to candied orange over a thick, oily wax. A coastal maturation lends a faint brine to the oily, waxy malt. Clynelish is unpeated, its character built on texture, citrus and coast rather than smoke. Refill oak lets the famous Clynelish wax lead, lemon and honey beneath. Active wood frames the citrus without smothering the waxy texture.

At 46% it is oily, citrussy and clean. Candle wax, tangerine and a maritime lift, with dried fruit, fig and walnut from the cask. Orange, beeswax and a maritime salt fill the middle. A long, oily finish ends on lemon and beeswax. This is the cult waxy malt of Brora.