June 2026 Releases from Chorlton Whisky

Greetings from a cold and miserable Chorlton! Flaming June? Flaming Nora more like. (What a terrible intro!). Maybe we’ll find more sense and a bit of sunshine in a few new bottlings though:

Right, here I go wandering around the underbelly of the Industrial Revolution for the occasion of this 10-year-old Clynelish! This is the first (named) Chorlton Clynelish, and not the last. Happy days.

On the nose this starts off beautifully fresh, coastal and very gently waxy, with funky fruits popping through.I get beach sand, pineapple cubes, tangerine peel, orange Chewits, condensed milk and some herby olive oil. In the background there’s this little thread of menthol and something phenolic. Lovely stuff.

On the palate: waxy citrus, sea water, rose petals, mango – very Clynelish. I also find light herbal touches, and again a slightly phenolic and peppery feeling – almost like someone teaspooned the cask with a bit of Talisker. (They didn’t.) The development is on more citrus, caramel, soot, salt and touches of stone fruit in the finish. It takes a bit of water beautifully.

It’s genuinely heartening that Clynelish’s current production is so good. This is top-notch stuff, with great texture and character, and both the fruity and coastal aspects of the spirit in full flow.

(Rumours that the chap on the label is a cousin of Hector McDram cannot be substantiated at this point.)

This first-fill bourbon hogshead produced 317 bottles at 59.0%, and they are available for £65 each.

Next up we have a 27-year-old Glen Garioch. I wouldn’t like to speculate about the tussle on the label here, but it seemed appropriate for a big old boisterous dram!

So, on the nose: baled hay, shredded wheat, milk chocolate, gloopy olive oil, hazelnuts, dried up honey, lemon jelly – really quite complex! There are little bits of something sooty and oily in the background, and some awesome flashes of tropical fruit if you give it a few minutes in the glass.

On the palate: powerful, waxy and slightly tarry, with lemon drops, cough mix, eucalyptus, peach crumble and resin. The development is on dark chocolate buttons, rosemary and green fruits, before a gently mineralic finish. With some water added – lemons and oranges, earth and soft honey.

I don’t know if this makes any sense, but this feels to me like an old peated whisky, just stripped of the smoke. All the tertiary stuff is there. In any case, it’s fascinating, complicated in a Old Highlandsy sort of way, and just great fun to drink.

This second-fill barrel produced 167 bottles at 58.2%, and they are available for £165 each.

Lastly we have a 15-year-old Aultmore, bottled just days shy of 16yo due to a leaky cask. Aultmore tends to be sherried, but it can work a treat in bourbon, viz:

So it’s bright and fruity on the nose – honeydew melon, lime & honey, dandelions, vanilla slice, pine bark and branches, and peach tea. Nice! With a bit of water – soft and custardy, with a few sultanas popping up.

The palate is malty and sweet, with maple syrup and shortbread cut through with lemongrass, lime leaves and spearmint. It develops on muffins and brioche, still balanced by lime, with lovely little touches of red fruits in the aftertaste (dried cranberry muffins perhaps).

This is just super-tasty. I love the leafy citrus balancing out the sweetness. Happily we got some of it into bottles before it all ended up on the floor!

This refill barrel produced only 160 bottles at 58.1%, and they are available for £75 each.

Admin

There’s been a big spike in shipping prices lately (mostly fuel surcharges due to the situation in Iran) so I have had to increase rates slightly. Apologies. I’ve absorbed as much of the increase as I can, and I hope to reduce charges again when/if normality resumes.

If you ever want me to hold onto bottles to combine with future orders to save on delivery, then just let me know. Such things can be arranged.

And…

…that’s it for now. I hope you find a bottle from this trio has tickled your fancy, and I remain available via all the usual channels if I can be of any assistance.

Cheers!

David