Old Pulteney 12 Year

Nose - apple juice, brine, orange blossom, vanilla, salted caramel, cereal grain, pear, fig, honey, nutmeg, vanilla, lemon, white pepper, grass, moderate ethanol burn. Taste - salted caramel, vanilla, cereal grain, sour apple, mint, sweet floral notes, lemon, peach, honey, pear, allspice, white pepper, mild to moderate alcohol bite, finishing medium short with honey, salt, and orchard fruit flavors. For reference, this review is based on the old 43% bottling of the 12 Year. The nose is sweet, floral, and earthy with apple juice and orange blossom underpinned by honey, fig, and a strong briny quality. The palate is very sweet and fruity, almost cloying, with some marked graininess, more orchard fruit, and a heaping dollop of salt. Wow, this is salty. There’s a sensation of tannins on the finish, but I think it’s actually the saltiness drying out my mouth. Unfortunately, it has that cheap, spiked apple juice quality that reminds me more of a mid-level blend than of a single malt. Overall, this is average for me. It has many traits of a decent, sessionable sipper, but that saltiness ceaselessly builds with additional sips and quickly becomes oppressive.

Not particularly exciting, but not bad either. I find it sort of generically scotch-y. If I wanted to introduce someone to scotch without overwhelming them, I might start here. Pretty mellow across all the tasting notes -- some vanilla, some peat, some smoke, some brine -- but it's like someone set all of the equalizer knobs to medium. It would benefit from peaks and valleys.

Smoother than expected. Very easy drinking.

Lekker romig, licht en fruitig. wel weinig rook

Light, balanced. Very little spice. Touch of smoke on the finish. Smells amazing.