Wick is a town by the sea, and Old Pulteney is a distillery in and of the town, nicknamed The Maritime Malt. Built in 1826, Old Pulteney uses a Porteus mill that is a century old to process the barley used in distillation. Named after the Pulteneytown district of Wick, the distillery is one of the most northern on the mainland. After almost 200 years of near-constant operation, albeit closed temporarily during times of war or temperance, the distillery currently produces 900,000 liters of whisky a year. The flare near the top of the bottle is meant to evoke a copper pot still. The Old Pulteney 12 year is the definitive offering in their core portfolio and is aged exclusively in ex-bourbon casks.
Dalwhinnie 15 Year
Like several distilleries, Dalwhinnie was started in the late 19th century and, though facing some bumps along the way like a short suspension of production during WWII due to barley restrictions, has remained in near constant production. Dalwhinnie also supplies a good deal of its output (90%) to the blended market. The distillery was briefly run by a firm from the United States in the early 20th century until Prohibition when it was sold back to Scottish owners. Dalwhinnie claims to be the highest distillery in Scotland, located in the Grampian Mountains and draws its water from Lochan-Doire-Uaine or Lock of the Green Thicket. The village of Dalwhinnie from whence the distillery gets its name, is located near the town of Strathspey and comes from a Gaelic word meaning “Meeting Place.” This Dalwhinnie 15 is one of only three expressions from the distillery, and the only one with an age statement.
Scapa 16 Year
The Scapa distillery is one of the most northern distilleries in Scotland, located in the Orkney islands. It is also one of the smallest, with only three staff on site (the manager operates out of Speyside, and the distillery itself is part of the Chivas Brothers branch of Pernod Ricard). Sadly, the small staffing means the distillery is closed to the public. The distillery used to be larger and produce several different offerings. Currently, all production goes into making the Scapa 16 that was launched in 2009. What kind of spirit is produced in a land where it is almost always ever-day or ever-night?