Clynelish 8 Year Old Single Malts of Scotland Whisky Review!

My first bottling from Single Malts of Scotland, and one of only a few independent bottlings of Clynelish that I've tried. This should be interesting!

Single Malts of Scotland is one of three independent bottler whisky brands put forth by Elixir Distillers (formerly Specialty Drinks), the London-based company owned by Sukhinder Singh and his brother Rabjir, the owners of founders of The Whisky Exchange, one of the world's greatest liquor retailers - if not the outright greatest. Single Malts of Scotland, or SMoS for short, was the first of those brands when it was first launched in 2002, followed by Elements of Islay and later Port Askaig, and now Black Tot rum. While SMoS has typically bottled single cask, cask strength Scotch whiskies, more recently they've dabbled in 'small batch' bottlings drawn from handfuls of casks that are known in the trade as 'parcels'. While still limited bottlings, they're obviously much more widely available and more budget-friendly than their single cask cousins, with simplistic packaging and with the 'Reserve Casks' range also being bottled at 48% ABV rather than full cask strength. There have been three 'parcels' of these Reserve Casks bottlings so far, each drawn from 'a maximum of eight casks', being mostly on the younger side, and largely coming from the usual suspects for independent bottlings: the likes of Diageo's Caol Ila & Clynelish, plus the usual 'unnamed Orkney', and a few others. Single Malts of Scotland is not imported into Australia, so the bottle that I'm reviewing today came from 'across the ditch' in New Zealand, from Christchurch's Whisky Galore - which would have to be another of the world's greatest liquor retailers. Before you ask, yes, it was intercepted by Customs on the way over, and yes, there was a relatively hefty excise and duty bill to pay - in comparison to the original purchase price at least, which was a ridiculously cheap $105 NZD, or around $97 AUD. I can't say what the final landed cost was since it was combined with another bottle, but at a guesstimate it would've been around $160-170 including its half of the shipping. So not terrible, but not quite the bargain that it would've been. But that's the price we pay for importing spirits into Australia, and it's not likely to change any time soon!

This particular Reserve Casks bottling is from their second parcel / second lot of bottlings, and was distilled at Diageo's Clynelish Distillery in the Northern Highlands - specifically in the village of Brora (yes, that Brora), around 90-minutes drive north of Inverness. One of Diageo's 'Classic Malts', Clynelish is known and loved for its fruity, waxy style of spirit, which is believed to stem from an oily build-up in their feints receiver - they discovered that after a thorough deep clean, then found that the waxy characteristics had been removed from the spirit! They now empty the receiver for cleaning, and then tip the contents back in before the stills are fired up again to keep that distinctive character intact. There are only a few official bottlings of Clynelish single malt out there, with the 'flagship' bottling being the very enjoyable 14-year old that is the most accessible, and the distillery is also a major contributor to the Johnnie Walker blends - particularly the Gold Label variant. Independent bottlings are plentiful from the likes of Signatory Vintage and Gordon & MacPhail, and can sometimes be found in sherry casks which is something that the distillery owners don't generally offer. 

That's not the case here though, because this Single Malts of Scotland example was matured in five ex-bourbon casks, and based on the smell & taste I'm guessing they were first-fill. At 8-years of age this is the youngest Clynelish that I've tasted - well, depending on the age of the rather lacklustre Game of Thrones NAS bottling that probably isn't/wasn't much older. That was the one that some Australian collectors & flippers went nuts over (we're talking $600 nuts), and ended up with a lot of egg on their face when it eventually landed here for as little as $80 - and it turned out to be a bit of a flop. I must admit that this SMoS bottling was something of an impulse buy for me, since it suddenly became available when I was ordering that second bottle, but I'm a fan of Clynelish, and pretty much anything that Elixir release is a reasonably safe bet - some are better than others of course, but I'm yet to taste anything of theirs that has disappointed. As mentioned above, this one was bottled at 48%, without chill filtration or added colouring. Let's see if this bottling keeps that streak alive, shall we?

Clynelish 8-year old, Single Malts of Scotland, 48%. Highlands, Scotland.

Distilled 2010 & 2011, drawn from five ex-bourbon casks - presumably some first-fill. Non-chill filtered, natural colour. 

Colour: Pale gold. 

Nose: Fresh, waxy and floral-sweet. Beeswax, fresh banana peels, lemon balm (e.g. lip balm) with extra lemon, and fresh floral sweetness. White (honeydew) melon and crisp pear, and some dry spices - sandalwood - with more time. Dry malty-ness in the background. Lovely summery nose. 

Texture: Medium-weight. Warm, bright & fruity, not as sweet or floral as the nose suggested. No heat. 

Taste: Dry spice again, sandalwood and some ground black pepper. Whole (unpeeled) under-ripe bananas, and more waxy lemon balm with extra lemon. A little dry herbal honey, a couple of vanilla malt biscuits, and a tiny hint of earthy peat heading in to the finish. 

Finish: Medium length. Crisp pear and honeydew melon, and a refreshing drying salinity. Sandalwood again - woody aftershave / eau de toilette. Candlewax, a hint of that dry biscuit-y malt again, and some dried apricot. 

Score: 3.5 out of 5. 

Notes: Not the most complex whisky out there, but a very tasty easy-drinker that showcases the distillery style well, while being distinctly different from the official bottlings - which is one of the hallmarks of a good independent bottling, if you ask me. It's interesting to see a younger, fresher style of Clynelish here, but it still has most of the classic notes that we expect from the distillery - the wax, the floral & fruit, and the very subtle salt & tiny puff of peat to dry things out. There are shades of younger modern Bruichladdich here, and that's certainly a good thing! 

Was it worth those extra duties & taxes and the higher landed cost? I'd say so. Mainly because once you've tried (and enjoyed) the 14-year old official Clynelish, then there's a large gap in price before you hit most of the cask strength independent bottlings - and then there's another very large gap in price before you hit the higher-strength official bottlings. So this is something of a mid-way point, and it's a refreshing experience to try this youthful, bright & fresh expression of Clynelish. Some will probably baulk at the idea of paying more for a younger whisky at a similar strength, but when you want to get to know a distillery you need to try different examples at different ages, to see it from different angles. That's just part of the fun, and in many cases the younger whiskies will actually come out on top! 

Cheers!