Old Pulteney 2008 (Signatory) (46%)

Bottled by Signatory Vintage, this Old Pulteney, aged 12 year old, from 2008, drawn from cask 800010 and bottled at 46%. Just 288 bottles were filled. Old Pulteney was established in 1826 in the herring port of Wick on the Caithness coast; it stands among Scotland's most northerly distilleries. Water comes from Loch Hempriggs, carried by a lade Thomas Telford laid in 1807.

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. It rested in ex-Bourbon oak, the wood adding only a light honeyed sweetness. By this age the waxy, honeyed core settles in over the brine. The northern cold draws out a slow, even maturation and a clean, bright spirit. Honey, beeswax and sea salt are the threads that run through the range. The distillery has worn the title of the Maritime Malt for good reason.

At an approachable 46% it is balanced. The refill oak lending a light vanilla, with a briny, oily edge. It is clean and bright, the coastal salt lifting the honey. The close is slow, brine over soft wax. This is a coastal Highland malt from the edge of the country.