Old Pulteney Harbour

 Old Pulteney Harbour

Old Pulteney Harbour	Data Sheet
Owner:	Inver House Distillers
Barcode:	5010509883825
Price:	RRP £35. However, it can be found for as little as £24 in some places (Tesco Supermarket for example).
Available in Israel*	No
Alcohol:	40% abv
Age	NAS
Cask Types:	A combination of Four different kinds of Ex-Bourbon and Virgin American Oak Casks
Chill-Filtered:	Yes
Natural Colour:	No
Kashrus Issues:	None
Kosher Certification:	No

* As of the date of this review.

Introduction

The marketing department of Inver House Distillers curiously describe this release as a “Limited Edition” yet it can be found in many supermarkets across the UK (Tesco’s and Sainsbury's for example). Perhaps they mean by this that it’s not part of their core-range, but a supermarket “exclusive”.

My wife and I had travelled to England a week before the Israel/Iran War began. For some reason, Bibi, neglected to tell us of his plans and we ended up stuck in the UK for almost a month, waiting to get on a "recovery rescue" flight to get home.

Blissfully unaware of what was about to happen, we spent a most pleasant week as guests in the lovely Brighton and Hove Jewish community complex.

Not having brought with any whisky from my parents’ home, we decided to take a leisurely walk down to the local Brighton and Hove Tesco’s on the second evening to see what they had. We were looking for something suitable for some casual sipping in the evenings. This Old Pulteney Harbour caught my eye.

Latest releases of Old Pulteney 12 and that odd “Flotilla” release I had bought have been very disappointing, the 12 tasting like the flavour had been watered down, lacking that lovely briny coastal house-style, and the “Flotilla” having a rather unpleasant bitter wood note to it. (See my review of the Flotilla here).

So, when I saw this “Harbour” on the shelf for just £24, reduced from £35 RRP, I was still hesitant at first. However, it was two minutes to ten o’clock and they announced on the Tannoy that the store was about to close. That meant that I did not have much time to contemplate further so I grabbed the bottle and headed to the counter. The bottle did not just have a security ring around its neck; it was actually locked inside its own individual security “cage”. I have never seen anything like this before. Upon paying, the cashier used some kind of tool to open this cage and hand me the box.

We walked back to our beautiful apartment flat inside the BNJC Jewish Community Centre with a shul and the "Novellino" Kosher Restaurant within the complex (only a 10-minute walk from the sea), to open this bottle and share it with my parents to finish off a lovely day, wandering around Brighton.

See TravelBrigton.co.uk

For pictures and more information about the “Novellino” Kosher restaurant, see here:

https://restaurantsbrighton.co.uk/experiencing-brightons-first-kosher-roast-at-novellino/

Jew Street

Whilst walking around the centre of Brighton we came across Jew Street. A quick Google told us that:

There were Jewish residents in Brighton from the second half of the 1700’s. Jew Street itself is named from Brighton’s first synagogue which was probably sited at the southern end, from about 1792, and is said to have also had a school.

Unfortunately, the few days of peaceful tranquillity in Brighton were shattered upon our return to London and the waking up to the news on Friday morning that we were at war with Iran and that hundreds of ballistic missiles were raining down on Israel.

Israeli air space was closed to all flights and we were, at least for now, stuck in the UK. We received an email from El Al informing us that our flight home had been cancelled.

We were left worried sick about the plight of our family back in Israel and desperately wanted to return home to be with them. We had planned all kinds of touristy stuff during our stay but obviously, we weren't exactly in the mood now so cancelled all our plans. 

We weren't contacted again by El Al until the 26th June when they offered us seats on a flight leaving on Sunday morning. We agreed immediately.

Old Pulteney’s Ongoing Cask Experiments

(Note: This section is a bit technical and I won’t be offended if you choose to skip it and jump to the actual review below).

The old standard 12-Year-Old was matured in traditional genuine Refill Ex-Bourbon barrels sourced from various Bourbon distilleries such as Makers Mark etc, in the USA.

The “Harbour” is a late addition to Inver House Pulteney distillery’s ongoing inhouse experimentation project with various types of made to order, custom Ex-Bourbon and American Oak Whiskey seasoned barrels.

Traditionally, the process of seasoning for American Bourbon distilleries begins by leaving the freshly cut staves outside and exposing them to the elements for around three years.

This reduces the humidity in the wood as well as reducing (but not eliminating completely) aldehydes and coumarin compounds which are responsible for those bitter and astringent woody flavours which would otherwise transfer into the maturing liquid in the cask. We don’t want to remove these natural organic compounds totally though, as when combined with the sweeter wood flavours such as glucose and vanillin, these compounds in tiny amounts, will actually contribute interesting flavours and body which add to the character of a whisky.

In recent times however, new methods are being developed in the modern industrial cooperages in America which rapidly speed up the seasoning process by heating the oak staves in large kilns at 50 Degrees Celsius for about a month.

Although using this method, the staves can be ready for use in a matter of a few weeks instead of years, according to cask experts in the US, it has been shown that when too many corners are cut, these harsh aldehydes and other bitter flavours may not have fully broken down. Tannins remain more pronounced and astringent and those bitter coumarins remains in higher concentrations.

This cutting of corners was in my opinion, very noticeable with the earlier “Flotilla” release, displaying oak sap resin dryness and even some bitterness, producing a very unpleasant drinking experience. Some friends I gave the Flotilla to try said that it was undrinkable.

A far as the Harbour release is concerned, they have employed four individual types of Ex-Bourbon barrels from their experimental custom to order cask project, specially prepared and seasoned for them. (As I mentioned above, these are not the standard genuine Ex-Bourbon barrels sourced from Bourbon distilleries and cask brokerages, but have been specially engineered to produce various flavour profiles).

Looking at my tasting notes, it sounds as if they are making good headway with their cask experiments with this Harbour edition after what in my opinion, was a bit of a rocky start. I'm glad to see that they seem to have their compass bearings again. (Notice all the seafaring references there?)

Packaging

I think that the blue-green teal colour for this Harbour edition is an excellent choice. It really expresses the sea-salty coastal-ness of this whisky.

It comes in the standard Old Pulteney bottle and cardboard box. Overall, the packaging is very pleasing to the eye. It isn’t modern and at the same time isn’t old fashioned. It seems to manage that classic timeless look.

I love the bottle shape, particularly the neck which resembles the shape of the stills.

I was rather amused by that subtle darker band that goes around the top of the box. Why amused? Because the more expensive Old Pulteney releases come with a box lid that lifts off. This edition however, has a standard fold flap, on top. However, that band makes it look like it is one of the editions that has a cap box lid. I suppose they do it so that if this Single Malt is sitting on the shelf next to an Old Pulteney with the box lid, they will kind of match up.

Old Pulteney Harbour Tasting Notes

The Appearance

The official Old Pulteney website describes the appearance of this whisky as “Sparkling Bright Gold”, but looking at my glass, it is quite clear (IMO), that the colour is heavily influenced by the addition of generous amounts of E150a caramel Spirit colouring, making the description somewhat disingenuous, unless they are trying to market the use of Caramel Colourant.

For a 40% abv whisky, I was quite impressed by the alcohol tears. They were surprisingly oily in nature for something chill-filtered.

On The Nose

Simply delightful, even straight out of the bottle a few seconds after popping the cork. After the disaster of their experimental cask range which included “Flotilla”, they have in my opinion, the cask selection just right with this one.

This is a lovely combination of First-Fill, Refill Ex-Bourbon barrels with some medium charred American Virgin Oak combined to produce this well-rounded Single Malt.

Notes: Slight coastal brininess without any peat notes. Green apples and toffee and something green and citrusy in the background (lemon and lime?). Sweet and silky American Oak flavours with sugared desiccated coconut, caramelised almond and light orchards perfume notes.

This whisky does not have a complex nose but it’s honest, fresh and delicious straight from the bottle. For its target audience (those who buy whisky in the supermarket), I am of the opinion that a bottling strength of 40% abv is the right choice for this casual sipping dram. Anymore would simply be a waste of time (for most) and money (for Inver House).

I was talking to one of the Rabbonim in Brighton and Hove and he said that he so much wanted to like the M&H Sherry Elements Single Malt but found it too harsh and alcoholic. When I asked him how much water he had added, he gave me a puzzled look.

“You add water?”.

“Yes”, I said. "It’s bottled at 46% abv to preserve all those lovely fruity notes, but you must add water before drinking. Around 5ml or one teaspoon".

“Oh, OK, I’ll try it again with water and get back to you”, he replied.

Tasting

This whisky reminded me very much of a patisserie cake in liquid form. Apple and salty caramel cream cake with orange marmalade, cinnamon and sultanas. Almond flakes sprinkled on top with a drizzle of honey.

The Finish

Honey, toffee, caramel cream, dry vanilla and sweet oaky wet wood spices.

Conclusions

There is something for everyone with this whisky. A really well rounded and perfectly balanced Single Malt (I haven't used the word "smooth" as that would imply "boring"), which serves as a simply excellent introduction to the wonderful world of Single Malt Whisky or could be a perfect choice for the more experienced whisky enthusiast who simply wants to wind down with a great dram without having to think too much, at the end of the day.

You won’t spend 20 minutes nosing this to discover hidden complexities and certainly this isn’t a whisky to experiment with different amounts of water. I added a literally a few drops (around quarter of a teaspoon) to squeeze out all those citrusy fruit notes, but honestly, most wouldn’t bother.

At £24 it’s excellent value for money. At £35 it’s a bit dear for what it is, which is an excellent casual sipping single malt. In addition to an “end of the evening winding-down dram”, it would make another great choice for a Kiddush whisky. It’s just a shame that it’s unavailable as yet in Israel.

I really enjoyed my time in Brighton and Hove and that goes for my time with this lovely Old Pulteney too. Given the opportunity I would certainly return to both. I left the remaining two-thirds of the bottle with my father in England to share at his shul’s next Shabbos Kiddush. LeChayim. Enjoy.