Old Pulteney 21-Year-Old Named “World Whisky of the Year” in Top Guide
Old Pulteney Single Malt Whisky is sitting on top of the world after winning one of the whisky industry’s highest accolades, World Whisky of the Year, in Jim Murray’s 2012 Whisky Bible Awards.
In a class of some 1,500 whiskies, Old Pulteney 21-Year-Old scooped the top accolade, along with three other esteemed awards – Scotch Whisky of the Year, Single Malt (Multiple Casks) of the Year and Single Malt (16-21 Years) of the Year.
Over the past four months, world-renowned whisky connoisseur Murray has nosed and tasted his way through all types of whisky to create his global best-selling ratings guide. He gave Old Pulteney 21-Year-Old a glowing review, commenting that the single malt is “by far and away one of the great whiskies of 2012, absolutely exploding from the glass with vitality, charisma and class.”
“It is an enormous honor to be named Jim Murray’s Whisky of the Year and we are delighted that the Old Pulteney distillery and team have been recognized for passion and depth of expertise in the art of whisky creation,” said Pat Graney, President of International Beverage Holdings USA.
This award celebrates the global appeal of a whisky that has been distilled in Wick at the most northerly distillery in the Scottish mainland since 1826. This coastal location gives Old Pulteney the unique “salty, nerve-tingling journey” Jim Murray describes in his tasting notes as part of the reason he loved the 21-Year-Old Single Malt so much.
This global recognition for Old Pulteney has coincided with an exciting year for the whisky, as it embarked on a momentous world’s first voyage: the Old Pulteney Row to the Pole. This ambitious expedition, led by Scottish explorer Jock Wishart and his five-man team, achieved their goal to be the first ever crew to row to the Magnetic North Pole in August this year.
From Jim Murray’s Tasting Notes of Old Pulteney 21 Year Old:
“Old Pulteney Aged 21 Years db (97.5) n25 if you had the formula to perfectly transform salt, citrus, the most delicate smoke imaginable, sharp barley, more gristy barley, light vanilla, toasty vanilla, roasted hazelnut, thinned manuka honey, lavender honey, arbutus blossom and cherry blossom, light hickory, liquorice, and the softest demerera sugar into the aroma of a whisky, you still wouldn’t quite be able to recreate this perfection…; t24 the sugars arrive: first gristy and malt-laden, then Demerara. This is followed by a salty, nerve-tingling journey of barley at varying intensity and then a slow but magnificently complete delivery of spice…; f24 those spices continue to buzz, the vanillas dovetail with the malt and the fruit displaying a puckering, lively intensity. Ridiculously long fade for a malt so seemingly light, the salts and spices kiss the taste buds goodnight…; b24.5 by far and away one of the great whiskies of 2012, absolutely exploding from the glass with vitality, charisma and class. One of Scotland’s great undiscovered distilleries about to become discovered, I think… and rightly so!”
Old Pulteney Single Malt Whisky
Old Pulteney Single Malt Whisky is diligently crafted at Pulteney Distillery in Wick. It is the most northerly distillery on the UK Mainland and was founded in 1826 by James Henderson at the height of Wick’s herring boom. The distillery lies in the heart of “Pulteneytown,” which used to be one of the most important and biggest herring fishing ports in Europe. International Beverage Holdings (www.interbevgroup.com) was established in 2005 as the international arm of ThaiBev, one of South East Asia’s leading alcohol beverage companies. With a network of regional offices in Asia, Europe and North America, the company is responsible for the production, sales, marketing and distribution of a portfolio of premium global brands in over 80 countries and territories. Inver House Distillers (www.inverhouse.com) is globally integrated into International Beverage Holdings and drives the distillation and maturation of Scotch through its five distilleries.