Review #981 - Signatory Vintage 1995 Clynelish 21 Year Cask Strength Collection
There have been a bunch of these Signatory Vintage Clynelish releases with a vintage around 1995/1996 and an age of 20 to 21 years; we think Signatory must have come into quite a large parcel of these casks at some point. This specific single cask, part of the brand's 'Cask Strength Collection,' comes with a 21 year age statement and a 1995 distillation vintage.
The wood type for this cask was a refill sherry butt, but despite that and the 21 years of maturation, the color of this liquid is still relatively light. We hope that means it's still spirit-forward despite the age - that Clynelish distillate is one of our very favorites in Scotland.
Signatory Vintage 1995 Clynelish 21 Year Cask Strength Collection
Scotland/Highland - Single Malt
Price: USD 229 (2026)
Age Statement: 21 Years
Strength: 55.7% ABV
Cask Makeup: Refill sherry butt
Details: Not chill filtered, no color added; cask 11228; distilled November 21, 1995; bottled March 9, 2017; 625 bottles
Tasting Methodology: Reviewed 2 times over 2 months from a sample (thanks u/orehnmadgib !). Tasted in a nosing glass each time, rested 15+ minutes
Nose: Spirity - old waxy spirit, a touch of rancio from the old oak, some mineral notes, both sweet and savory. Sharper notes like dry oak and a touch of sulphur pop up; after that, the wax notes become very strong, like candle wax. Musky melons and cantaloupe add a bit of fruit, and we get a touch of soap at times.
Palate: Punchy with a nice combination of spirit and oak; honey sweetness combines with lots of wax, hay, malt, and grassy notes. It's fizzy, and there's a great finesse between heft and subtlety. Tangy peach and honeydew melon bring fruit, and we also get pears and mineral notes; it becomes more cloying.
Finish: Warming with an increasing amount of oak spice, as well as some vanilla, dry bready malt, and a bit of fizz. Fruits of orange, melon, and cantaloupe continue, and we also get lemongrass, honey, and a bit of sugar syrup in the background. It's still waxy as well; this is a medium-long finish.
Final Note: Lovely, lovely whisky. We're surprised that this is from a sherry butt - it must have been used several times before, very much a 'refill' cask due to the ultra subtle sherry influence. Given this blind, we would have sworn this was an ex-bourbon whisky.
This walks the line between hefty character and subtlety/nuance so well - excellent balance, still distillate-forward despite the age, but that oak does begin to rear its head in the finish with a bit more spice. This whisky also oozes that classic Clynelish waxy character, something we don't always see in younger versions or more modern bottlings. This is an excellent whisky, one to treasure.
Value is tricky for two reasons: one, it's an expensive bottle as it's 20+ year old cask strength Clynelish, which tends to bring a high price tag. Second, it's also hard to find a consistent price for a bottle like this since it's an older release, and auction results vary quite a bit. Value is below average due to the price, but honestly, we would pick this one up in a heartbeat - it's pretty special.
Our Rating: 8.7 / 10
In the current whisky landscape of increasing prices and variable quality, we've added a value rating to our reviews that relates to the score and the available pricing of each whisky. This roughly equates to a 0-10 scale; no reviews so far have exceeded a score of 10, although it is technically possible for the formula to produce a value rating higher than 10 with a high enough score and low enough price.
Value Rating: 5.42
About Us: We're a husband and wife review team living in the Midwest United States. Generally, our reviews and tasting notes will be a compilation of both of our experiences with a whisky over several tasting sessions.
Check out our other Clynelish reviews:
Review #745 - Single Cask Nation Clynelish 12 Year Single Cask
Review #227 - Single Malts of Scotland Reserve Casks Clynelish 10 Year
Review #164 - Clynelish 14 Year
Review #84 - SMWS 26.194 'Bish. Bash. Bosh!' - Clynelish 10 Year
Review #83 - SMWS 26.192 'Afternoon Baking' - Clynelish 10 Year
