Advent 2022 #14 - Octomore 10.1

Always happy to try an Octomore. I’ve loved a couple but for the most part find I’m happy with a sample rather than a bottle. Let’s see if this is one I’ll have to seek out.

Octomore 10.1, Islay Single Malt, 59.8% ABV

Minutia: Distilled in 2013 and matured for 5 years in 1st-fill American white oak casks. Reviewed blind, neat in an opaque glencairn.

Color: Jonquil, ripe corn; 0.4.

Nose: Smoke, ash, a bit medicinal. Tar, tobacco, leather. Bubblegum.

Taste: Smoke, heat/pepper.

Finish: Musty, earthy, pepper. Long.

Guess: Laphroaig 1815

I’m not surprised given the tar and leather that I associate with Octomore which have made me guess Octomores as Laphroaigs a handful of times by now. A very solid dram. The nose is the star, and in comparison the palate is almost not worth a look. It is, but any expression would have a hard time living up to it after the nose. The bubblegum note was a surprise and a delight even though I don’t go for flavors like that anymore. Beyond that, it feels boilerplate Octomore.

Score: 90

Thanks for reading!

Advent 2022 #13 - Bruichladdich Black Art 7.1

Always happy to try something like this, so I picked up a sample. As a person who primarily prefers peated whisky, something like this is a really good choice for a blind review as I can’t be biased (as much) by my own preferences, or by expectations for something that’s supposed to be special or very highly regarded.

Bruichladdich Black Art 7.1, Islay Single Malt, 48.4% ABV

Minutia: Distilled in 1994 and matured for 25 years before bottling in July 2019. Reviewed blind, neat in an opaque glencairn.

Color: Tawny; 1.4.

Nose: Richly fruity and nutty. Cereals, dry wine. Green wood. The nose is nice and interesting.

Taste: Sweet malt, like candy. Spices. These play well together.

Finish: Wood. Grains, with an occasional sweet note popping in. Long.

Guess: I can’t imagine this is anything but Black Art 7.1

With a nose a rich as this one, with no sign of peat, I can’t think of a sample I’ve bought that might compare, so this was an easy one. It’s very nice, and a good choice for a change of pace from peat, but it doesn’t ‘wow.’ It had me thinking of a 25-year-old Glen Moray I had recently and falling a bit shy of it, though I must say that was one of my favorite unpeated whiskies to date, so falling short isn’t exactly a knock.

Score: 82

Advent 2022 #11 - Bruichladdich Bere Barley 2010

Nothing special for me to say about this one, just another expression to try.

Bruichladdich Bere Barley 2010, Islay Single Malt, 50% ABV

Minutia: Distilled in 2010 and matured in American oak casks for 8 years and bottled in early April 2019. Reviewed blind, neat in an opaque glencairn.

Color: Yellow gold; 0.5.

Nose: Musty berries, orange, malt. Cream. Light anise. Putty.

Taste: Malt and honey. Slight pepper.

Finish: Same as the taste. Medium.

Guess: Laddie Bere Barley, maybe and IB

This was too easy to guess, as it didn’t seem like Bunnahabhain and other than that Bruichladdich is just about the only unpeated malt likely to be in my sample inventory. The nose was very promising and I like what I smelled and how much I smelled. Unfortunately not much of that came through on the palate and it was mostly just malty. If you like that, you’ll really like this. As I’ve grown to appreciate that, I liked it more than I would have, but unfortunately I found the palate a bit boring.

Score: 75

Advent 2022 #1 - Elements of Islay Oc6

 

Octomores more than 5 years old are always fun, particularly IBs. So I'm looking forward to getting into this one.

Elements of Islay Oc6, Islay Single Malt, 58.1% ABV

Minutia: Distilled at Bruichladdich (Octomore) in 2011 and matured in ex-bourbon barrels for 8 years and bottled in 2019 yielding 870 bottles. Reviewed blind, neat in an opaque glencairn.

Color: Yellow gold; 0.5.

Nose: Very smoky, ashy, medicinal. An astringent quality which has some fruity and musty tones. They’re a bit hidden, though.

Taste: Smoke. Peppery heat. Charred meat. Tannic.

Finish: Bitter earthy flavor. Smoke and ash, though less. Long.

Guess: Gotta be a Laphroaig, maybe 1815? If not, it’s definitely an Islay, and there’s a good chance it’s not just bourbon casks.

Interesting. It’s been a while since I’ve had an Octomore, so maybe it would have jumped out at me better if I had, but I’ve mistaken Laphroaigs for Octomores blind before, so… This is a nice dram, is very familiar, and it has strong flavors. I usually like Octomore’s better than this, and I think the combo of that astringent quality in the nose seeming to mask some notes, and that bitter flavor in the finish held it back for me (that bitterness isn’t necessarily negative, but it’s a bit much for me). Overall a nice dram, but maybe 8 years was too much time in the wood?

Score: 82

Lochindaal 10 2010 W.D. O'Connell

I was placing an order for some Irish whiskey on a site specializing in that, and they had a new offering from an Irish bottler of their first Scotch, and it happened to be a style from a distillery I was looking to try. As I understand, Lochindaal is not a formal line from Bruichladdich like Port Charlotte or Octomore, but the peat levels fall somewhere in between those two. Here’s my review of it.

Lochindaal 10, 2010 Vintage, W.D. O'Connell, Islay Single Malt, 63.1% ABV

Minutia: Distilled on December 1, 2010 and matured in a 1st-fill ex-bourbon barrel numbered 4278 for 10 years and bottled in 2021 yielding 282 bottles. Enjoyed neat in a glencairn.

Color: Deep copper; 1.0.

Nose: Smoke, ash, rubber. Smoke, leather, tobacco. Charred meat.

Taste: Peppery peat. Vegetal. Wood, coffee grounds.

Finish: Hot, dying embers. Burnt syrup. Medium.

This is a nice cask. It does indeed feel in between Port Charlotte and Octomore. But then again, so do Port Charlottes and Octomores. Still, a bottle I’m glad a took a reach on it given its high price for a standard bottle, but this just a bottle of 500ml. Though, since it feels Octomorey, it is about what you would expect to pay for 10 year old single cask. It’s got its own thing going on and I like what it’s got.

Score: 87

Musical Evocation: Alestorm – “Flower of Scotland”

Top 10 Whiskies of 2021

It's a bit late in the game, but I forgot to post it earlier this year. This post is about the Top 10 Whiskies I tried over the course of 2021. It is all about when I took the notes, not when the whiskies were released, and they are in no particular order.

1. Talisker 8 Special Release 2018
2. Ledaig 13 2005 Single Cask Nation
3. Bowmore 23 1989 Port Cask Matured
4. SMWS 129.1 Kilchoman
5. Caol Ila 18
6. Port Charlotte MC:01
7. Longrow 18 2020
8. Caol Ila 7 2009 Signatory Vintage
9. Laphroaig Cairdeas 2018 Fino
10. Springbank 21 2020

Octomore 11.2

 

I saw that this was available from the distillery shop, and since they actually ship to the US, I ordered this when it was a website exclusive rather than travel retail due to the pandemic. It was an easy decision knowing how I feel about both peat and wine casks.

Octomore 11.2, Islay Single Malt, 58.6% ABV

Minutia: Distilled in winter 2014 from the 2013 harvest of 100% Scottish grown concerto and propino barley. 25% was matured for 5 years on Islay in ex-red wine casks from the Pauillac region of France. 75% was matured on Islay in ex-American whiskey casks and finished an for 18 months in ex-red wine casks from the St Julien region of France totaling 5 years. Enjoyed neat in a glencairn.

Color: Tawny; 1.4.

Nose: Red fruit, apples, tobacco, leather. Barbecue. All of it: the sauce, the air, the meat, you name it.

Taste: Nice texture. Smoky and spicy barbecue sauce. Not one that’s both, but a spicy sauce and a sweet sauce together. Salty.

Finish: Smoke, red fruit. Woody, dry. Long.

Awesome all around, a classic Octomore.

Score: 93

Musical Evocation: Woods of Ypres – “Wet Leather”

Advent 2021 #11 - Bruichladdich The Organic 2010

No preamble here. To the notes!

Bruichladdich The Organic 2010, Islay Single Malt, 50% ABV

Minutia: Distilled in 2010 from organically grown barley harvested at Mid Coul farms in 2009. Matured in ex-bourbon casks for 8 years. Reviewed blind, neat in an opaque glencairn.

Color: Jonquil, ripe corn; 0.4.

Nose: Floral, like a cosmetic shop, fresh fruit (kiwi is most strongly suggested here), a bit malty.

Taste: Malt, fruit, honey, some heat.

Finish: About the same, no heat from the alcohol, though. Medium.

Guess: Caol Ila Unpeated, maybe a Bunnahabhain. Bruichladdich wouldn’t surprise me.

This makes sense. While it didn’t scream “Bruichladdich” it felt a bit less than cask strength which I believe is how unpeated Caol Ila is bottled. Bunnahabhain was purely a backup guess as it didn’t feel nearly as heavy as any Bunnahabhain I’ve ever had, without some trademarks I associate with the lighter but well aged casks I’ve had. Anyway, a nice dram as far as unpeated goes for me. A bit one-dimensional, but still nice.

Score: 82

Musical Evocation: Sting – “Fields of Gold”

Here are links to the other posts from this calendar:

Octomore 7.3

 

After having covid, my whisky consumption – and thus capacity for reviews – declined somewhat (in part due to taste/smell implications) so it’s been a bit since I’ve posted a reivew, but I’ve gotten to this one (expect a few reviews in pretty quick succession prior to starting my Advent calendar in December). I think this was the second Octomore I bought a couple years ago after reading some really great things. Between that time and opening it I’ve had the pleasure of enjoying a handful of them, and thus far the floor for an Octomore has been pretty high, but so has the ceiling. I’m wondering where this falls as I’ve been looking forward to it for a long time.

Octomore 7.3, Islay Single Malt, 63% ABV

Minutia: Distilled in 2010 from grain harvested from a single field, malted to 169 ppm. Matured on Islay for five years in ex-bourbon casks and Ribera del Duero Spanish wine casks and bottled in late 2015. Enjoyed neat in a glencairn.

Color: Burnished; 1.1.

Nose: Smoke with a nutty, malty sweetness. Homemade popcorn. 

Taste: Sweetness in the tropical area, chili spice. Green wood and smoke.

Finish: Dry, woody smoke. Bitter coffee. Long.

It’s quite good, and I enjoy it, but the palate is a bit too bitter for it to be a homerun for me. The nose is much nicer than the limited specific notes mentioned above would suggest, that would fall in the 90s with the palate elements in the mid to high 80s. On the lower end of Octomores for me, if you can believe it, but I’ve had some that were just tremendous so it’s a tough act to follow (7.2, 9.3, and 10.3 come to mind).

Score: 88

Port Charlotte MC:01

I’m always interested in at least trying these experimental releases from Port Charlotte. If I could I’d have them all, but not many (if any) make it over here to the States (around me, anyway), so when I see a sample available I go for it.

Port Charlotte MC:01, Islay Single Malt, 56.3% ABV

Minutia: Distilled in 2009, 48% matured in French oak casks for 6 years, 52% in American whiskey casks, then put together and matured in Sicilian Marsala casks for 2 years, bottled ultimately after 9 years of maturation on January 16, 2019. Enjoyed neat in a glencairn.

Color: Tawny; 1.4.

Nose: Hammy, smoky. A sweetness trying to break through. After a bit in the glass it does in the form of some vanilla/cream and red fruit with spices.

Taste: Thick. Heat/spice. Orange.

Finish: Warm smoke. Salt. Intensity is short-lived, but the more subtle salt and smoke linger long.

A really strong whisky. Hopefully they continue to make it. If I find myself in a travel shop that has it I’ll definitely be getting a bottle. Between this and CC:01 I am really enjoying this Exploratory Cask series, and I’m looking forward to getting whatever ones I can.

Score: 91

Musical Evocation: Lana Del Rey – “Gods and Monsters”

Bruichladdich 20 Third Edition

 

Out of nowhere a bottle this old became available for samples when I was placing an order so I took advantage. Like probably a lot of you, my sample backlog is rather sizeable with a significant amount of whiskies I can’t wait to try, but this one get itself toward the front of the list better than many others have. It got toward the top anyway, but another small break from peat helped it get even further up. A nice old Bruichladdich from old Bruichladdich, I wonder how I’ll like it.

Bruichladdich 20 Third Edition, Islay Single Malt, 46% ABV

Minutia: Distilled in 1985 and matured for 20 years in ex-bourbon casks with a finish in Malmsey Madeira hogsheads and bottled in 2005 (I’ve read the finish was 5 days). Enjoyed neat in a glencairn.

Color: Tawny, 1.4.

Nose: Sweet fruit, strawberry. Malty.

Taste: Fruity with spice/bite. Honey. Reminds of Longrow 18 without the smoke.

Finish: Similar sweetness, dry, oak. Medium-long.

This has a much more Sherried feel than it really is with only a week in those casks. I really enjoyed having this one in my mouth, particularly because it reminded me so much of Longrow 18 which is one of my favorite expressions. It felt very similar with a tiny little bit of bite on it, almost as if the smoke in the Longrow took away the bite, or made the bite feel more at home and thus less noticeable. A really nice dram I’m glad to have tried.

Score: 85

Musical Evocation: LOR3L3I – “Ghost”

Bruichladdich Waves

I picked this up when placing and order and figured it would be neat to have an expression from around the time they opened back up as most of what I’ve had has been fairly new. Not much more to say going into this one.

Bruichladdich Waves, Islay Single Malt, 46% ABV

Minutia: Matured for 7 years in ex-bourbon and ex-Madeira casks. Enjoyed neat in a glencairn.

Color: Russet muscat, 1.3.

Nose: Dark fruit. Something almost smoky that turns into apple.

Taste: Salty malt, a bit like cookie dough. Subtle spice, green wood.

Finish: Smoky, dry, a bit of bitter grape. White grape juice, maybe?

Hmm, if I didn’t know any better I’d say this was peated. The smokiness on the nose wasn’t quite smoke and was subtle enough where it makes sense just being an unpeated whisky that gets close to being smoky, but on the finish it was pretty substantial at the start. I don’t think they were making Port Charlotte or Octomore when this was distilled, otherwise I’d guess it was from a run right after a batch of either of those. Neat to see a flavor like that from Bruichladdich.

Score: 83

Octomore 10.2

I’ve finally caught up with posting everything I’ve reviewed so I’m taking this as an opportunity to get to a handful of samples which have either been waiting a while and/or I’m eager to try as well as take a bit of a break from peat (he’s says, reviewing an Octomore) as I work my way to review 225 for which I’ve planned an Ardmore sister cask side by side. Ok, you got me, the peat break starts after a couple of peated samples I’ve been itching to get to. Starting with an Octomore from a series I’ve had two of (10.3 and 10.4) and thoroughly enjoyed.

Octomore 10.2, Islay Single Malt, 56.9% ABV

Minutia: Distilled in 2010 from Scottich grown Opticon and Oxbridge barley peat to 96.9ppm, matured on Islay for four years in 1st fill ex-American whiskey casks then for four years in Sauternes wine casks before bottling in 2019. Enjoyed neat in a glencairn.

Color: Chestnut Oloroso Sherry, 1.2.

Nose: Lawn clippings, apricot, you can tease out some smoke that stays there once you do. There’s thank funk that typically screams Octomore, but here it’s more of a loud whisper.

Taste: Heat, diminishes into smoke, which lets meat creep in.

Finish: Big musty, fruity smoke. Leaves the fruit behind early and a medicinal note kicks in. More the cough syrup kind than iodine/bandages. Longish.

Time in the glass serves this well. This is nice but not did not compel me to acquire a bottle, something the 10.3 and 10.4 both did. 

Score: 86

Top 10 Whiskies of 2020

This post is about the Top 10 Whiskies I tried over the course of 2020. It is all about when I took the notes, not when the whiskies were released, and they are in no particular order.

1. Lagavulin 12
2. Laphroaig 28
3. Talisker 25
4. Talisker 30
5. Ardbeg Alligator
6. Longrow 18
7. Octomore 10.3
8. Octomore 10.4
9. Springbank 15
10. Springbank 24 Single Cask

2020 Advent #11 - Octomore 10.3

I loved the 10.4, my only experience from that series, and I also loved 9.3, thus far my only X.3. Does it hold up to the past?

Octomore 10.3, Islay Single Malt, 61.3% ABV

Minutia: Malted to 114 PPM, distilled in 2013 from the 2012 harvest of concerto barley from Octomore Farm. Matured for 6 years in American oak from Jim Beam, Heaven Hill, Buffalo Trace, and Jack Daniels producing 24,000 bottles.

Color: Amber, 0.7.

Nose: Dirty peat. Filthy. Smoke. Meat. Perfect.

Taste: Dry, smoky, oaky.

Finish: Subtle into big smoke, some brine, hint of green fruit.

Guess: Octomore, maybe some wine involved.

I thought the dry taste may have come from a dry white wine cask, but it’s all Bourbon here. Otherwise nailed it, it was just to obviously Octomore on the nose. Which, by the way, I could smell for days. This is my first perfect score in one of the three categories, and it got that in the nose. Good as the taste is, that’s the part I liked the least, as the finish was just shy of the nose, the taste just behind that. I’m hard pressed to think of how this could have been made more appealing to me. Add this to the list of bottles I’m buying after I finish this calendar.

Score: 95

Musical Evocation: Cellar Darling – “Insomnia”

Here are links to the other posts from this calendar:

Octomore 10.4

I’m glad I found a sample of this, I was interested in trying something so young and that only saw virgin casks, particularly the cask bit. 

Octomore 10.4, Islay Single Malt, 63.5% ABV

Minutia: Distilled in 2016, matured for 3 years in heavy toast French Linousin virgin oak casks until bottling on July 18, 2019. Enjoyed neat in a glencairn.

Color: Burnt umber, 1.7.

Nose: Funky Octomore peat, intensely meaty/barbecue smoke. Much heavier on meat/barbecue spice than the smoke.

Taste: Woody, smoky, spicy. Reminds a lot of a kangaroo jerky.

Finish: Dry, peaty/earthy, as spices fade over a long finish.

Amazing nose, incredibly savory and mouthwatering. I’m going to be trying real hard to justify getting a bottle shipped to me. This is right up my alley.

Score: 94

Musical Evocation: Led Zeppelin – “Achilles Last Stand”

Octomore 6.1

While I’ve been fortunate enough to come across an occasional not absurdly priced Octomore at a bar or as a sample, this was the first bottle I bought. It was pretty well priced, though not on the shelf when I went there. They had to check in the back/upstairs, and took a while doing so, so I really appreciated that.

Octomore 6.1, Islay Single Malt, 57% ABV

Minutia: Made from Scottish barley, peated to 167ppm, aged 5 years in American Oak ex-Bourbon casks. Enjoyed neat in a glencairn.

Color: Burnished, 1.1.

Nose: Strong but light smoke, funk, maritime quality, a bit floral.

Taste: Intense sealike smoke, pepper.

Finish: Smoky, delightfully savory, warms up a bit, fades over long finish.

This is such a great dram to really take your time and savor. The less you are doing in addition to drinking it, the better. It’s not earth shattering, and it isn’t really an everyday thing, but I will be sad when it’s gone. 

Score: 87

2019 Advent #20 - Port Charlotte PC 12 Oileanach Furachail

A sample of one of Port Charlotte’s travel retail expressions. They generally make good stuff, but sometimes the travel exclusive expressions are for experiments gone wrong. Let’s see how this one is.

Port Charlotte PC 12 Oileanach Furachail, Islay Single Malt, 58.7% ABV

Minutia: Aged 12 years, I’m pretty sure it saw a Sherry cask at some point, but it’s not explicit on the website. Enjoyed neat in a glencairn.

Color: Old oak, 1.8.

Nose: Smoke. Hot, like red pepper. Something else I don’t know.

Taste: Weird flavor. Gummy candy, indiscriminate flavor. Feels thin almost at times. There’s some heat.

Finish: Malt. Smoke and peat in a big way. Ramps into a fade over a medium-long finish. Bit of brine.

Guess: PC12.

The nose and taste were ok to somewhat interesting, but the finish is superb. You can’t wait to get it out of your mouth, not because it’s gross while there, but because you want that finish again. If only the earlier part of the dram was at that level.

Score: 86

Here are links to the other posts from this calendar: