Whisky : Old Pultney 13 Year SMWS 52.36 “Shades of Black”

Country/Region : Scotland/Highland

ABV : 59.2%

Cask : Ex-Bourbon (11Y), First Fill Spanish Oak PX (2Y)

Age : 13 Year (Distilled 21 March 2007)

Nose : Sticky syrupy fruits and butterscotch.  Waves of thick gooey toffee and butterscotch rolled out of the glass and gave the impression of melted Werther’s Original.  Dried bing cherries, dates, and buttery pie crusts emerged with time to breath and become more prominent with a few drops of water.  Mild nutty almond notes along with Christmas figgy pudding and Japanese jelly candies.

Palate : Medium bodied and a bit oily with sweet berries and caramel.  Butterscotch, salted caramel, and candy corn were in the foreground while dried fruits, cherries especially, lingered in the background. Youthful heat and spirit shined through with the sharp sweetness.  A few drops of water thickened the mouthfeel and subdued the butterscotch allowing lovely strawberry licorice and candy notes to appear.

Finish :  Lingering citrus and sugar.

Score : 4 

Mental Image : Melted Car Cup Holder Werther’s

Notes :  Known as “Cherries, ferries, and salted berries” outside of the US this bottle lacked the character and depth I was hoping to find.  The salty maritime profile of Old Pultney was completely missing in action.  Water or plenty of time to breath— as this was better in subsequent tastings— improved this from being a sickly sweet drain pour to something palatable, even enjoyable.  While this did improve with time it was still a long way from something I would be inspired to grab and drink.  I would happily accept a dram if someone were offering— but this is just not the sort of thing I want lying around.  This had way too much butterscotch and lacked the complexity I was expecting.

I know I was not alone in thinking this improved with some time— I did bump this from a 3 initially to a 4— as another participant at our tasting messaged me a few days later to revise his impression of the bottle.  That was not totally unusual, sometimes drams just need more time to mellow— or different tasting conditions.  This is one reason why I like to try everything two to three times before I type up my notes.  

Overall, this was not horrible, but it was not very inspiring.  I suspect those with more of a sweet tooth than I, especially those who love caramel and butterscotch notes, will find a lot more to love in this dram.