The Whiskyman is a Belgian bottler of supposedly fine malts. He is very popular there, but in The Netherlands I have not seen his bottles yet, apart from this one which I ordered in Belgium…

He has a few different labels from this very austere white label (love it!) to the more gypsy -like ‘music’ labels with titles like ‘While my whisky gently weeps’. This cask was bottled under two different labels, together with Whiskysite.nl / De Druiventuin. A Dutch whisky shop based out of Leiden, with a vast collection. They released it for their festival last year.

Clynelish 1997 by The Whiskyman

Sniff:
Warm and spirit-driven. Slightly salty, hay, shaved oak staves. Also sawdust which made me want to sneeze a bit. Dusty with warm vanilla custard and banana crumble. Also some white fruits and earth floors in a dunnage warehouse. After a few minutes the typical Clynelish waxiness starts to set in. The style is more that of furniture or leather wax than beeswax.

Sip:
Warming again, with vanilla and oak. Very sharp at first but mellows down if you give it a couple of minutes in the glass. Pepper, salt, chilis. Also some crisp fruit; grapes, fresh apples. Nutmeg, liquorice and cloves after that.

Swallow:
The finish stays sharp and spirity but with a clear wood influence. Spicy with toasted white oak.

I just read that it came from a refill sherry hogshead. I think this whisky makes a case for the fact that the wood matters more than the previous contents, especially after a few fillings.

I guess, but I am not sure, that the wood used is American oak since I get more of those flavours than anything else. I also love that the spirit of Clynelish is very present here and makes itself known without the wood ruling everything.

To me, this is an absolutely stunning dram. I had to get used to it at first because it was very sharp when I first opened it, but now it is maybe my favourite 1997 Clynelish. The Master of Malt version is also stunning but in a different way. These whiskies are rather different.

Funnily enough, both labels (The Whiskyman and Whiskysite.nl) are available from whiskysite.nl.

Clynelish 1997-2012, 15 years old, 53.5%, Refill sherry hogshead, The Whiskyman or Whiskysite.nl, available at whiskysite.nl for € 59.99