Review by: dustbunna
I’ve sampled around thirty or so Scotch whiskies in the past few years, but only recently started appreciating tasting notes and taking my time to really peel back the layers and variations. I’ve found that bottles sometimes change massively for me over time, so this format is an attempt to reflect some of that dimension of my enjoying and appreciating these whiskies.
Distillery: Pulteney.
Bottler: Distillery bottling.
Region: Highlands.
ABV: 43%.
Age: 12 years. Bottled in 2018.
Cask type: Ex-bourbon casks.
Price: $42 USD.
Color added, chill-filtered.
Bottle open across approx. 1 month, notes taken leisurely across that period. Bold notes taken beneath the shoulder, regular-formatted notes taken further into the bottle past the halfway point, italicized notes taken towards the heel.
Nose: citrus, salt, orange rind, lemon drops, candied apple, turbinado sugar.
Palate: powerful alcohol prickle, more salt, alcohol prickle subsides: green apple, white pepper, toffee, and the tiniest note of perfume in the background.
Finish: medium-long, oak, more citrus, earth, vegetal, return of the salt (less intense than before, an afterthought.)
Conclusion: I can see why some folks don’t like Old Pulteney (I almost was turned off of it when I first tasted it), but the way this dram mellowed for me was great! Like a candied orange rind, or a salted caramel, with enough brininess and spice to balance the sweeter notes. Constantly surprising and on the move. I have many other whiskies to try, but will definitely grab another bottle of this to stash away down the road, and hope that the new 12yr compares and ages favorably.
When freshly opened, letting this sit for ~15 minutes in a Glencairn with a drop of water helped to move past the powerful alcohol and oak notes; I found this was unnecessary after a few weeks and simply sipped it neat after a minute or two of rest. Paired wonderfully with green olives when not tasting by itself.
Final Score: 84.
Scoring Legend:
- 95-100: As good as it gets. Jaw-dropping, eye-widening, unforgettable whisky.
- 90-94: Sublime, a personal favorite in its category.
- 85-89: Excellent, a standout dram.
- 80-84: Quite good. Quality stuff.
- 75-79: Decent whisky worth tasting.
- 70-74: Meh. It’s definitely drinkable, but it can do better.
- 60-69: Not so good. I might not turn down a glass if I needed a drink.
- 50-59: Save it for mixing.
- 0-49: Blech.
Malt Runners 