Old Pulteney 1990 (Authentic Collection)

Single malt Old Pulteney, an independent Cadenhead's bottling matured to 22 year old, from 1990 and bottled at 55.2%. 204 bottles in all. Built in 1826 in the herring port of Wick on the Caithness coast, Pulteney is the maritime malt of the far north. Inver House has made it the centrepiece of its single malt range since 1995.

Distilled in Pulteney's distinctively shaped copper stills on soft Loch Hempriggs water, the make was then aged beside the North Sea for that maritime edge. An American oak cask shaped it, flattering the waxy, honeyed make. Long ageing brings an oily depth, dried fruit and a mellow coastal salt. A gentle, unhurried maturation suits the waxy, honeyed Pulteney character. The make is clean and waxy, a style built over nearly two centuries by the sea. 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.

At a full 55.2% it is intense. The refill oak lending a light vanilla runs under a salty maritime note. It is rounded and deep, the maritime note woven in. The finish runs oily, saline and warm. This is a far northern malt shaped by sea air.