If you’ve paid attention to what other whiskies I’ve reviewed, you’ll have noticed a trend to Islay whisky. When I learned I liked peat and that it was the thing Islay was known for, I did some research. After learning there were 8 active distilleries (and a few island distilleries in a similar vein), I resolved to try every distillery’s whisky, at least their core offerings. I knew some of it, like anything aged 30+ years, would be more long-term goals/dreams, but I could at least try all the standard expressions and get a sense for what they are all about. I was wary knowing Bunnahabhain was the “odd man out” of the Islay distilleries, but wanted to give it a go anyway and see if I liked something unpeated from the region just as much. My first exposure to Bunnahabhain was actually the 18, which I’ve reviewed already and didn’t love, but also didn’t find objectionable, so I wanted to see how I liked their younger expression.
Minutia: Aged in ex-bourbon and ex-sherry casks. Enjoyed neat in a glencairn as the work day wound down; sat about 10-15 minutes.
Color: Deep gold.
Nose: Some kind of nut, or nutty malt. Something I can’t place but I don’t like, kind of like bad molasses or butterscotch I don’t necessarily want to eat. Sweet, maybe it’s more sherry than I like? There’s a smokiness if you go slowly and can find it. The nose does not have me looking forward to drinking it.
Taste: Water certainly wakes it up if you add it. Better than the nose, while I’m not in love with it, my concerns from the nose melt away quickly. It tastes like a somewhat harsh butter made from whatever nuttiness is in the nose. I think the unappealing part is the sherry, it tastes like caramel that is off, and I suspect I need a good amount of peat to enjoy the sweet sherry influence, or sweetness in general. I was able to find a subtle note of rosewater when mentioned - I was drinking this and Ralfy mentioned it - but not if it wasn’t on my radar from that.
Finish: Middling, reminds me of bourbon, perhaps a bit toward maple.
Whatever it was in the nose that I didn’t care for, it was hard to focus on anything else. I was worried it would translate into the taste but it was a complete turnaround for me once it crossed my lips. I recorded this review a dozen or so small glasses into the bottle I have, and it is not a go to, but I did find myself enjoying it ever so slightly more each pour. With the preference I have for peat, this is an acquired taste, but good enough that I very much want to see what this distillery can do with peated malt, and I’m looking forward to getting at the samples I have.
Score: 75
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