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Clynelish 1992 Distillers Edition

Average score from 6 reviews and 17 ratings 81

Clynelish 1992 Distillers Edition

Product details

  • Brand: Clynelish
  • Bottler: Distillery Bottling
  • Series: Distillers Edition
  • ABV: 46.0%
  • Vintage: 1992
  • Bottled: 2007

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@hunggar
Clynelish 1992 Distillers Edition

These Distiller’s Editions are always fun ones to try. Usually (not always) they choose good casks for the wine finishes. I’m a fan of the Islay DE’s, but let’s see how a Clynelish holds up. I’m an on-again/off-again drinker of the 14, but I’ve had some brilliant Clynelishes over the years. With a good sherry finish this distillery can make magic. Here we have the 1992 vintage, which was given a second maturation in Oloroso casks before being bottled in 2007.

Nose: Apple cider, apple vinegar, red apples, pears, plums, blackberries, grapes, cherry liqueur, sherry, anise, strong oak, dark chocolate, and a good dose of salt. This offers up big fruit and big wood with a nice balance and medium intensity.

Palate: Medium bodied and very fruity. Sultanas, rum, heavy oak spices, red wine tannins, raisins, cinnamon, chili, plum. The flavours are largely a continuation of the nose, but this intensity was unexpected.

Finish: Spices and fruits arrive, sorry… attack first. More rum flavours, wine tannins, blackberries, apple vinegar, huge oak, loads of salt, woodspices, sultanas, and plums. There’s an interesting sour plum/apple vinegar note that seems to counter the sweetness. Long, drying, and intense.

Ok, maybe it’s not perfectly balanced, but this whisky has character and a lot of kick. Is it only 46%? Feels higher. It’s pretty rummy, which is cool. Oaky, too. Lots and lots of oak. In fact it’s almost over-oaked. Luckily I can take some punishment, so the intense drying effect and powerful spices are within the realm of bearable. In fact the oak works well with the apple/plum vinegar note to counter the sweetness. Overall this one is odd and kind of clumsy, but it’s fun if you can take a punch.

@Nemesis101

Excepting Islay, my favourite two distilleries sit diagonally opposite each other at the far extremes of Scotland's mainland. These are Springbank in the warm gulf-stream lashed south-western Mull of Kintyre. And Clynelish in the cold, desolate and remote north-east, (OK, I might be exaggerating for poetic effect).

I've also got to admit to having a fondness for Diageo's 'Distiller's Edition' range. They all seem to have a 'warmth' about them, particularly the Dalwhinnie and Oban Distillers Editions. So let's see what they do to the traditionally dry and briney Clynelish....

Nose: Yep, it's definitely dry and briney. But with some red fruits, plums, a touch of treacle followed by cooked dark fruit. Blackberries and also a slight shortbread-type edge. Saltiness is the most apparent factor but not so that it overpowers everything else. Very nice.

Palate: Quite soft and sweet. Raspberry jam. Treacle sponge pudding. A return of black fruit. Dry, but the briney saltiness has now taken a back seat, allowing the fruitiness of the sherry cask to really show its quality. Really flavoursome.

Finish: Well it was never going to be anything else - very very dry, salty and briney. Sweet fruit tempers it, but I love dry finished malts. And this really lasts and lingers.

A wonderful whisky - I love it. But I was very surprised it was still available at a relatively cheap price. Distilled 1992, bottled in 2007 yet still available for £50. This is a cracking bargain. Grab one while you can.

Whoops, I mean 1992. When it comes to Clynelish, if you weren't aware, 1992 is the stellar year to write home about. For some reason, no wrong could be done in 92. Not sure why it was so much better than other years. Of course, much older years were even better. This said, 92 stands out.

@rigmorole - no I wasn't aware of the 1992 greatness from Clynelish so thanks for the info - I'll see what else I can find. Although to be honest, I can't ever remember a bad bottle from this distillery. It is a pity that many bottlings seem unavailable in the US and elsewhere - I think we're blessed in the UK with websites such as thewhiskyexchange, (I don't know where I'd be without it).

@scips

Distilled in 1992 and bottled in 2008 Bought while visiting Talisker 2 years ago . I didn't like it at first... but I will give him another chance... let's taste it again. The nose is very subtle, hard for me to find out what's in there. I think of some sandalwood, probably a small chili peper or at least some spice in the second nose. The alcool kills all the taste in first mouth. But the finish is very nice. The second try is easier, the mouth is much more used to the alcool volume probably. There is a background taste of medicine all over that sadly stays. But after 2-3 trials I get some hints of vanilla and probably oak wood. It's sad that the medicine stays in mouth, I needed to drink some water to wash it out.

Finally, I don't hate it anymore, it's not my favorite, I don't like whisky medicine taste. It's sad that there is not a lot of clear tasting note, and that everything is hidden by the spiciness of the alcool.

@RexAlban

Oh my, you think you have this one in the bag, but another lift to the nose and there's more.

Clynelish Distillers Edition was distilled in 1992 and bottled 2007. Double matured in Olorosso Seco casks.

The distillery in Brora is second only to Pulteney in being the most northerly of the mainland distilleries. The closeness of them both to the North Sea adds that maritime edge to their characters.

On the nose now: sherry, sweet raisins or is it sultanas?, coffee creams and away in the distance black cherries.

Palate: Spice, oak tannins, sherry, wild red berries, sea spray mixing wonderfully with pear drops.

I like this whisky and suggest you would like it too.

It's a very, very nice malt. The nose is a bit oaky, but the palate is beautifully smooth. A few drops of water smooths the nose out and seems to creamy up the palate. All in all a very fine example of a sherrie Highlander. BTW, Rex, my bottle says distilled 1992, bottled in 2008. The release number on the bottle is CL-Br: 171-3h. Is yours different?

I meant sherried Highlander, lost the D somewhere.

@chrisrbarrett

Ocean spray on the nose and palate at first glance. Sweet vanilla comes to the fore next. Soft flavours on the palate, well balanced finishing with a hoppy tannic-ness.

@chrisrbarrett

Nose is spicy oak and ocean iodine. Colour is a bright gold with a hint of green in it. Rich mouthfeel with significant heat from the alcohol to go with the spicy oak and vanilla flavours.

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