It's as good as they say it is...but it doesn't come on strong. No, the OP 21 sees no need to fling itself at you; this is not a dram desperate to be loved by whoever comes its way. Rather, it displays an almost shy nose - soft, light, creme brulee, baked apple with cinnamon. Once you taste it, though...well, my exact phrase on my tasting sheet is "the Holy Trinity is this good." Maybe I'll go to hell for that (not really), but this is an insanely smooth, well-integrated single malt. The baked apple and cinnamon are there on the palate, with an almost buttery quality, along with the sea breeze and citrus (albeit now orange) that mark Old Pulteney's whiskies. There's even a light, pipe tobacco note to be found - according to head distiller Malcom Waring, it's a result of the water's drainage through a peat bog, as all of their barley is unpeated. I could strive to write out more notes, but at the end of the day, there is an almost mystical quality to this dram that beggars adjectives and descriptions. It simply is an example of what good whisky can be, and it is worth the steep price tag...every cent of it.