The second to last Master of Malt bottling for a while. Clynelish is an all time favourite of mine so I have high expectations of this one. I just seem to love almost all bottlings that come out of that distillery, although there are some that I really don’t like.

Here comes the proze.

Sniff:

Clynelish by/at Master of Malt

A warming, waxy whisky with a good bit of mineral scents too. Austere they call that. Compared to some other 1997/1998 bottlings it is far more friendly, which I like. Gentle, with warm vanilla sauce, slightly salty and some wood scents. Slowly, after a while, I find some sweet lemon curd. Strangely, after about half an hour I start getting mushroom scents. Not in a bad way, though.

Sip:
Drier and sharper than I expected it to be after nosing it for a long time. There is a light woody bitterness that is very enjoyable. Vanilla, white pepper with quite some wood later on, in a very splinter like way. I get honey, beeswax and some fruit after a minute or so. Mango.

Swallow:
The finish lingers beautifully and highlights the honey and vanilla. The fruit gets some more time in the spotlight too. Fruity, woody and very delicious.

I’m constantly reshuffling my favourites from this batch of Master of Malt samples. First the Springbank bourbon cask, then the Auchentoshan, the Boutique-y Invergordon and now this one. Of course, if I had shitloads of cash in the bank I would order them all, but since that is not happening I will probably wait before making a choice. Knowing myself I will wait so long that half of what I want is gone and the choice has been made for me.

Anyway, what I am trying to say is that this stuff is friggin’ delicious and is very close to my favourite ‘January 2013’ bottling of Master of Malt.

Clynelish 15, at 56.1% ABV is available at Master of Malt for £ 74.95 and a sample will cost you £ 5.50.

Official sample provided by Master of Malt.