Review by: ZoidbergOnTheRocks
Clynelish has very few official bottlings, which is a shame. It’s good stuff. Happily there are many excellent IBs and I’ll get around to reviewing a few for sure. The stock 14 is always a pretty solid choice, so let’s see how the Game of Thrones release stacks up.
Tasted on 9/20/2020, neat in a Glencairn.
Clynelish 14 is the standard expression bottled at 46% and is readily available everywhere. No info on color or filtering, sadly. We could hope about the filtering, but it’s a standard expression from Diageo and they value consistency above all else, so it’s surely chill filtered and colored. (In fact, both of these bottles are exactly the same color, despite what you see in the pic.) This particular bottle is 70cl for the UK market, bottled in 2016.
Distillery: Clynelish
Bottler: Distillery Bottling
Region: Scotland, Highlands
ABV: 46.0%
Age: 14 years old. Bottled in 2016.
Nose: orange, wax, oil, sea spray, light spice, a bit of light smoke, perhaps some vanilla and a bit of caramel.
Taste: wax, orange, white pepper, a bit herbal, even somewhat floral, mouthfeel is nice and oily. Perhaps a touch of smoke?
Finish: waxy, a little pepper, some orange sweetness, perhaps a hint of smoke, surprisingly long, some very slight bitterness on the tail end of it.
This is always a solid dram. The citrus and wax go together very well, the whole thing is nicely balanced. A bright and clean feel throughout. High quality for a standard (honestly only) expression indeed, everyone should have one of these. A great intro for people who aren’t into smoke or sherry. That’s usually the opposite of me, yet I keep one of these around and dip in often. This is one of the few bottles that I keep a spare of stashed away.
Final Score: 83.
Clynelish Reserve Game of Thrones Limited Edition
This is the NAS Clynelish from the Game of Thrones series that Diageo & HBO put out in 2018. Bottled at a promising 51.2%, but sadly no info on filtering or coloring.
The description on the official page for this says “Serving Suggestion: Naturally, it’s best served chilled or over ice.” Hrm… a hint about a rough flavor, or a mistaken interpretation of House Tyrell’s role in GoT?
Distillery: Clynelish
Bottler: Distillery Bottling
Region: Scotland, Highlands
ABV: 51.2%
Age: NAS. Bottled in 2018.
Nose: wood dust, resin, wax, ginger, malt, some small orange in the back, a bit of pepper. With water: a bit better balanced w/ wax, spice, orange, malt, oak, some light smoke.
Taste: oak, wax, vanilla, a bit dry and bitter, pepper, some citrus. Mouthfeel is thinner than the 14, less oily, but still good. With water: waxy, citrus, vanilla, oak, still a bit dry, mouthfeel is still nice. Less bitter.
Finish: a burst of bitter oak, then some wax, pepper, a bit of citrus, a little smoke, rather bitter throughout, longer than expected. With water: similar, though the bitter oak is reduced a smidge.
This is actually a pretty reasonable, young Clynelish. It’s improved by a splash of water, for sure. It’s a bit woody (especially neat) and sharp, and even at it’s best there’s a bitterness underlying the palate and finish. Still, those nice waxy/citrus Clynelish notes come through well. Balance could be much better.
I do note that as I nose the last drops of this in the glass there is a sort of odd funk coming through that I can’t quite place.
Final Score: 77.
Comparison
Order: 14 > GoT
The 14 is a clear winner over the GoT for me. Great balance on the 14, solid mouthfeel, love those waxy citrus notes. The GoT is a younger, spicy, woody, and more bitter variation that’s still not bad, but I’d choose the 14 any day.
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 