Kirkland Islay

I went out and picked up a couple bottles of this once I found a Costco that had some in stock in my state. I’m always on the lookout for budget options (thus why I’ve tried Shieldaig and Hamiltons and the like), and Kirkland has a decent reputation. Does it do a decent job, or is it a pricier version of those other expressions mentioned in brackets?

Kirkland Islay, Alexander Murray, Islay Single Malt, 50% ABV

Minutia: Distilled on Islay and matured in casks for some amount of time and bottled on March 5, 2021 by Alexander Murrary for Costco under their Kirkland Signature label. Enjoyed neat in a glencairn.

Color: Deep copper; 1.0.

Nose: Brine, earthy, smoke.

Taste: Vegetal, earthy, spicy. Sweet and savory notes try to break in, but the saltiness holds.

Finish: Earthy and salty. Medium. There’s a kind of smoked shellfish note that lingers a good while after the finish has mostly faded.

A rather nice whisky. While nobody ‘needed’ this expression, it doesn’t exactly strike me as a sell-off of bad stock or anything like that as it holds together pretty well. The 50% bottling strength paid off as it reminds me a lot of the recently reviewed Smokehead but doesn’t have the same thinner mouthfeel. This is a fine budget-ish option if the other basic core offerings from Islay are a bit above this one’s price point. 

Score: 82