Review by: The Muskox
This was from a monster night of whisky tasting. I have enough notes and memories to review about 4 or 5 drams, but we managed to taste over 40 bottlings in one night. My palate was mostly shot about 10 whiskies in, but we all had a blast anyways. We stopped at a bar first, and this was my first glass of the night.
Distillery: Clynelish.
Bottler: Official bottling.
Region: Highlands.
ABV: 46%.
Age: 14 years.
Cask type: Bourbon and sherry casks.
Price: $89 CAD
Color: e150. Non-chill-filtered.
Nose: Right away there are lots bitter, earthy spice notes. Turmeric, cumin, and mustard seed. Reminds me of the curry-spiced rice I made last week. What little sweetness is here is augmented by spice, earth and herbs. There’s honey, but it’s woody and waxy. There’s fruit (apple, lemon, banana) but it’s green and tart (save for a touch of sweet raisin). Dried twigs and salt. Sun-dried tomatoes, of all things. Wheat bread. A touch of candle wax, though I’m not sure I would have picked up on it if I hadn’t heard about that specific note being found in this whisky so often.
Palate: Silky texture with medium weight. Lemon up front, then warm spice. Oak, nutmeg, and cinnamon. Plenty of black pepper -. A little bit of sherry influence here – raisins and nuts. A touch of turbinado sugar, but very measured. More of that whole-grain-y malt. Rich tobacco.
Finish: Long and dry. Plenty of wood and salt. A touch of peat smoke. There’s something like French toast, but it’s not sweet. I guess that breaks down to custard/malt/cinnamon. More unripe fruit and bitter earthy spice. Walnuts and banana peels.
Conclusion: Complex and tasty. For me, it’s in the same flavour camp as other “coastal” whiskies like Arran, Tobermory, and Talisker. I’m finding those whiskies to be some of my favourites. It’s actually pretty close to Talisker in it’s savoury and spicy aspects. I probably prefer it to Talisker 10. I like the finish a lot more, and I find the nose more interesting. I feel like I’m gonna need to spend more time with this whisky then just a single glass to appreciate it fully. I look forward to that.
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 