Thompson Bros. Highland 11yo
Royal Mile Whiskies | 56.3% ABV
Too Much Too Young
One thing I’d like to see more of in 2022 are shop exclusives. It has been a tough 24 months for independent stores across Scotland and further afield. Having a specific shop release attracts attention and lures us into the store, or online presence. There’s the added aspect of trusting a retailer and their ability to pick a cask. Some are given special access to distillery casks that might not be available to others who haven’t had a long history of supporting a specific producer. Mutually beneficial, if the price is right, then such bottlings are well worth considering.
Like many of their releases, it’s hard to keep up with the Thompson Brothers who clocked up 99 bottlings in 2021. Several of these were specific to retailers in the UK or abroad. I feel sympathy for anyone that is attempting to collect ‘em all. Having been there from the very beginning with their first bottling (kindly handed back to support the Dornoch Castle Whisky Bar), I’m very glad that I sidestepped such a need to obtain every release. Not only financially, but also physically tiring from all the effort tracking them down. I expect such a need to build a collection comes at a cost of enjoyment? Would you be able to fully appreciate a whisky that you’ve begged, borrowed, stole and who knows what else? It’d detract from my sense of pleasure. Without question, there are those who enjoy lining up these releases (unopened) and taking in the spectacle, like some orchestrated North Korean stadium fanfare. Ultimately, it’s a hollow gesture and says more about the individual than the whisky.
Remember the whisky? This comes from a distillery in Sutherland and was bottled at 56.3% and 11 years of age after spending 18 months in a rum cask from Diamond distillery, which is located in Guyana. Quite the mix, and Diamond is well known for having an assortment of its own. It’s become a hostel for unwanted stills from closed rum distilleries. If there’s a type of still, you’re excited about beyond a straightforward Coffey or pot still, such as Savalle column stills or even wooden stills – yep, you read that correctly – then, this is your place. These are the last working wooden stills out there as far as we know and each still brings a different imprint to the rum. It’d be great to know from which still the rum from this finishing cask matured. With blending popular in rum, it’s a moot point and likely a mixture of components. Given the widespread nature of the potential styles at Diamond, it offers more questions and personally, a compulsion to experience the outcome.
I’ll probably step out of line here when I say Clynelish, or more precisely, modern Clynelish, needs time. I’ve lost count recently of the number of youthful whiskies from this distillery that share characteristics of hotness and immature profiles. Water is an ally and the issue isn’t exclusive to the independent sector as several of the official hand filled or distillery exclusives also suffer from the same issue. It’s just that this is Clynelish and no one likes to talk about such things.
The Scotch Malt Whisky Society are fond of a young Clynelish as it’s an instant seller, but recently they’ve been losing their appeal as they’ve been appearing on a regular basis. Other independents have clambered onto the bandwagon and done accordingly, as we all love to try a Clynelish. This has been amplified by the 1990 vintages at the other end of the spectrum that are slowly drying up, yet when they do appear at retail, seem to start north of £300 nowadays.
Clynelish is widely respected and sought after, however if you cannot afford that 1996 sherry cask, then you’ve shopping at the lower end. Nothing wrong with this whatsoever. We’re more likely to be forgiving of a £60 Clynelish than one nearer £300. Oh yeah, I’ve probably inadvertently let the cat out of the bag that this mysterious Highland whisky was distilled across the road from the revived Brora distillery, oops, sorry.
That’s another aspect we’re seeing now with Clynelish as Diageo knows these casks will be bottled young, and in some cases, might not enhance their brand. That’s the risk when you deal with brokers and independents; once you’ve sold that cask, the decision to bottle or finish is out of your hands. That’s not a sympathetic viewpoint, just reality, and if you’re happy to take payment for the cask, then you cannot complain. You can restrict the use of the distillery name and I’ve heard some tales about the lengths some will go to ensure this through heavy-handed lawyers - even on samples of cask photographs. History shows us that for many years, Diageo didn’t really care or put much value on the Clynelish brand. Despite our fondness of the classic 14 year old expression; the brand has almost stumbled into the limelight by accident rather than any brilliant plan.
Lacking the ability to name the source, you get inventive and that’s when imaginations run riot and produce labels such as this Thompson Brothers bottling that was a Royal Mile Whiskies exclusive. The devil is in the detail. Here it’s the presence of the griffin or whatever mythical creature that’s very prominent. Latin was never my best subject at school and all those beasts blurred into one hybrid monster. Still, if you know your whisky history and that of Clynelish, then you’ll be aware of the famous 5 year olds that were bottled by Ainslie and Heilbron in the 1960s. Today, these are extremely sought after because the whisky is exceptional for its age and a true unicorn or mythical beast. The Ainslie and Heilbron logo was the aforementioned mythical creature and hence the strong association with this Highland distillery as a previous owner before being acquired by DCL in the 1920s.
There’s a rocky road where we could attempt to explain Clynelish A and Clynelish B both operating on the outskirts of Brora. The tag nature of name changes over the decades has led some to a confused state. I’d rather keep that for another day and just say, it’ll be from the original Clynelish, which isn’t the one you know today, or the one that we’re trying in this review.
The use of rum casks to finish a whisky isn’t something entirely new, we are seeing more of it applied nowadays and to mixed effect. Cadenhead’s have utilised their leftover rum casks to mixed effect with some inept offerings and the odd gem such as the Ardmore partially matured in a Caroni cask. Then, there was the truly disappointing Talisker 8 year old rum finish bottled as part of the 2020 Special Releases illustrating that finishing is a minefield where the risk is multiplied. Could the flaw be, when dealing with rum casks, those responsible for maturation arguably don’t understand rum in the same detail as sherry wood?
The Thompson Brothers have bottled several rums and are vocal in their appreciation of the spirit. Whereas their early rum releases tended to sit around at retail, these are now snapped up alongside their whiskies. They operate a ballot system which I’ve mentioned previously in a Teaninich article to try and limit the secondary activity. Fortunately, this bottling did hang around longer than expected at Royal Mile Whiskies and retailed for £64.95 before selling out.
Cats in gangs loitering around a distillery
Review
Highland malt finished for 18 months in a ex-rum cask from Diamond distillery, 55.2% ABV
£65 originally now sold out
Nose
Coconut ice, tangy orange peel and an engineered citrus aspect that takes me back to those teeth killing Wham bars. Caramel moves into scorched wood. Green apples, strawberries and oddly, Rich Tea biscuits. Limescale, gold foil, raisins and Appletiser. An old carpet, white cap mushrooms and watermelon. Fruit sugars and a whiff of perfume. A well-used plastic table covering and spearmint. Adding water reveals golden syrup with the metallic tin, lime jelly and popcorn.
Palate
Quite spirit based initially, caramel and white chocolate and flashes of zest. A prickly youthful profile with agave, watermelon and green peppercorns. Chewing gum that’s lost its flavour, olives, apples and a touch of ash. Water unlocks a pleasant oozing texture, desiccated coconut, saline and talc powder.
The Dregs
Time reveals all. Initially, this whisky was fairly average, but a good airing over a week or so, helped bring out new dimensions and settled things down nicely. The experience went up a notch resulting in a higher score than I would have given after the first couple of pours.
At the end of the day, this is a good young Clynelish, that I feel has been given a twist and lifted up by the deployment of the rum finish. Something a little different and a solid pick from Royal Mile Whiskies, who have since released an exclusion Caol Ila from this bottler (which sold out very quickly) and hopefully we can expect more exclusives in 2022.
Score: 6/10
Tried this? Share your thoughts in the comments below. DM