Old Pulteney is something of a cult whisky among the knowledgeable. Its reputation, built up over many long years of distilling, is sterling. Its distinctive maritime tang is sought after, and its heritage appreciated. Jim Murray himself gave the 21 Year Old the top spot in the 2012 edition of his Whisky Bible.
Yet, to the wide whisky world, the distillery and its malts remains relatively unknown. A pity, we think.
Where the name is well earned
Old Pulteney has a unique combination of characteristics as far as Scottish distilleries go.
While technically a Highland whisky, it is far from its compatriots, and is the northernmost distillery on the Scottish mainland itself. It’s situated far from the Speysiders, the Island and the Islay distilleries, in the Northern town of Wick.
Yet it contains characteristics that seem to be a marriage of the malts coming from those regions. So you could say that Old Pulteney’s malts defies easy stereotyping, or you could take the view that the regional classifications of whisky never made that much sense anyway.
Ourselves, we just enjoy appreciating Scotch without slotting them into neat little boxes.
Old Pulteney has its roots in Wick, where the herring were quite literally as numerous as the fish in the sea. They teemed in such vast schools, in fact, that the sea turned silver with the flash of their scales. The silver rush, much like the gold rush, attracted immigrants, who set up shop in Wick. The small (at first) area of Pulteneytown was built by Sir William Pulteney in 1810, as part of the town’s expansion into a major fishing port.
Fortunes were made in Wick by selling Herring, but naturally, fortunes were also made by selling whisky to those who put to sea. The Pulteney distillery opened in 1826, serving those bars that in turn served the fishermen. It is no coincidence that the distillery’s original packaging featured an illustration of a fishing boat, chased in gold and silver.
The fish slowly disappeared, however, and the fortunes of Wick waned. Fishermen found other ports, and the town is now a shadow of its heyday self. Yet, the distillery endured all the way until the aftermath of the First World War. The temperance movement was in full force, the town itself went “dry” in 1922. The distillery finally fell silent in 1930,.
In 1951, however, the stills were once again fired, and the distillery’s second lease on life started. Despite having changed hands on numerous occasions in the intervening years, it survived the Scotch Whisky Crash of the 1980s, and continues to produce whisky to this day.
If anything, the name “Old Pulteney” only hints at the history and resilience of the whisky and its makers.
The Maritime Malt
Now, the whiskies coming out of Old Pulteney are known for one very particular characteristic- a salty tang that emerges towards the middle of tasting.
Speculation is that it has something to do with the unique shape of its stills, which are translated to the shape of the bottles. Crucially, they have no swan-necked line arms. The reason, apocryphally, was that they were removed because the manager found their original, birdlike shapes too tall for the building in which they were to be housed. Others speculate that maturation near the ocean causes the whisky to take on the brine of sea-spray.
The truth is, no one knows why it tastes the way it does. Tests have been run to find saline content in the whisky, and as yet, none have been found. What we do know is that somehow, whatever the whisky is matured in, no matter how old it is, it is salty.
Now, the old range of Old Pulteney all had this characteristic, and in particular, the 21 Year Old had such a wonderful balance of citrus, bananas, butterscotch, and of course, salt, that we found it quite irresistible. So, it was with a bit of trepidation that we found out that a new range would be released to replace the old.
The new lineup was unusual- not only were the bottles changed, but that it would exclude the 21 Year Old.
That of course, bore investigation.
Old Pulteney 12 Year Old
Nose: Matured in ex-Bourbon casks, and shows it. We get a brief floral note, followed by a hint of brine. It then evolves to pine, coconut, vanilla and then apricot.
Palate: A sweet one, but restrained and light. We taste light honey and citrus-lemon perhaps- which slowly takes on the flavour of nuts, brine and a slight florality- lavender perhaps?
Finish: Not woody at all, but fairly light. Mid-short, with a light brine and citrus remaining.
A good start, with a recommend price of S$135. Makes for pleasant drinking with some good depth from a relatively young whisky. The characteristic brine is there.
Old Pulteney Huddart
Nose: A blast of salt, followed a medium smokiness. As the smoke trails off, we get a whiff of aged parmegiano served with honey, grain, nut, and pine.
Palate: A sweetness reminiscent of the 12 Year. There’s definitely honey and caramel here. There’s salt, as well, balanced by the fire of peat smoke.
Finish: A medium length with peat as the dominant note, but it’s not excessive or distracting. Quite agreeable.
A very clean, well constructed whisky for S$160. It’s hard to put it in words, but “well structured” comes to mind- everything flows naturally, with no odds and ends poking out. The barley used in its making was not peated- the smoke comes from the liquid formerly held in the barrels. We suspect that’s the secret to balancing the flavours. It reminds us of a lighter, less fiery Talisker.
Old Pulteney 15 Years Old
Nose: This was cleared aged in a sherried European Oak cask- from Galicia, or so we hear. We get the scent of brine, but also a wine note to complement it. There are also sultanas, dried apricot and green apples as well, for good measure. There’s walnut and tobbaco to finish.
Palate: A thick dollop of honey. There’s dried apricot, raisins, toffee and sticky date and fig pudding. There’s also a familiar floral undertone, the brine, chocolate and pecan.
Finish: A bit of pine and spice, quite long and dry.
Somewhat less briny than its siblings, but very pleasant. The sherry is there, but it’s not overbearing- an exercise in restraint and moderation. The nose seems fairly sweet, but it’s deceptive. The flavour is drier than we initially supposed. Quiet delicious and well priced at S$180.
Old Pulteney 18 Years Old
Nose: Richer than its younger sibling. It’s definitely salty, and just as definitely sherried. The initial impression is a kind of farmyard funk. There’s a wine note as well, followed by the sherry characteristics; sultanas, caramel, figs, and dates. The floral honey notes are still present, but now we find earth and spice to accompany it.
Palate: Sweet. Rich. Thick. The initial impressions are honey, sultana, figs, apricot and dried peach. There’s lemon zest and sweet orange as well. Brine once again appears, as well as the light floral flavour. There’s a bit of chocolate and toffee, which slowly moves into spice and earth.
Finish: Spice, clove and pepper. An earthiness is present as well.
Well, well. This is really excellent. A good sherried whisky, to be sure, but the sherry doesn’t dominate all the flavours of the spirit, allowing the honey, brine and earth to shine. There’s plenty of depth and complexity here to really take in. Elegant yet rich- the Valhrona Chocolate Gateau of whiskies. Really enjoyable for S$215, which to us is an absolute steal.
Summing it all up
An excellent collection, from start to finish. We’re quite impressed at how similar, yet different they all are. Each manages to capture the distillery’s character, yet remain distinct. Still, all are well made; not excessive, pleasant to drink, and elegant.
A fine set of successors to the old range. We can heartily endorse all of them, and which you should choose is a matter of preference, even more so than age. If we had to choose, we’d take the 18 Year Old. We enjoy the richness, and power, backed by elegance and finesse.
You can buy the entire range at La Maison du Whisky.
