Old Pulteney 17 Years Old

This official Old Pulteney single malt, aged 17 year old, and bottled at 46%. Pulteney, first licensed in 1826 in Pulteneytown on Scotland's far northern shore, it has been the maritime malt of Caithness ever since. It is one of the last urban distilleries, set among the streets of Pulteneytown.

The spirit was drawn off the flat topped wash still and boil ball spirit still that give the make its body, and matured by the shore, where sea air works into the wood. A Pedro Ximenez cask laid a dark, raisined sweetness over the coastal malt. Past a decade the honey and wax build, knitting with the coastal salt. The cool, damp northern climate slows maturation, letting the spirit take wood gently over many years. Caithness sits at the very top of mainland Scotland, exposed to the North Sea. The distillery passed through several owners before Inver House took it on.

Reduced to 46%, it is mellow. The Pedro Ximenez lends raisin, date and treacle, and a coastal salinity meet soft vanilla from the cask. Soft brine and orchard fruit sit behind the sweetness. A waxy, coastal finish lingers long. This is Old Pulteney's classic maritime character.