Old Pulteney 2002 (Old Malt Cask) (50%)

An Old Pulteney single malt, selected and bottled by Hunter Laing, a 18 year old coastal malt, from 2002, drawn from cask HL 18699 and bottled at 50%. 182 bottles in all. Pulteney was dating to 1826 by James Henderson in Pulteneytown, Wick, and it remains one of the most northerly distilleries on the mainland. It is one of the last urban distilleries, set among the streets of Pulteneytown.

It was worked through Pulteney's boil ball stills, fed by Loch Hempriggs, before long maturation by the sea drew in its coastal character. Maturation came in ex-Bourbon wood, lending honey and vanilla under the salt. At this age it is polished and waxy, the sea salt folded into a rich, honeyed body. Years in the cask round the spirit, the wax and honey deepening with age. A faint salinity threads the honey, the mark of long coastal maturation. Sir William Pulteney gave his name to the planned town that grew around the harbour.

Undiluted at 50%, it is concentrated. Sea salt and a coastal tang meet light vanilla from the refill oak. The mouthfeel is oily, the honey carried on a waxy body. The finish runs oily, saline and warm. This is Old Pulteney's classic maritime character.