Caol Ila 13 yo Discovery

 

 

 

43°

Distillery : Caol Ila - Islay

Bourbon Casks

Independent Bottling 

By Gordon & MacPhail

Limited Edition 

Single Malt 

Edited in 2018

Peated around 35 ppm

 

 

 

Launched in 2018, the Discovery range is one of the 5 classifications from bottler Gordon & MacPhail. It is undoubtedly the most accessible to the general public, with non-vintage bottlings at a reasonable price.

 

 

 

Let's Taste It : 

The influence of bourbon casks is quite strong, barely mitigated by a stringy peatiness. Icing sugar, vanilla, caramel, leather. The distillery's maritime profile is discreetly asserted: salt, tide, iodine,kelp, seaweed. A sunny beach in summer. Quite fresh. On the palate, white fruits, citrus, it's very sweet. Candied lemon, grapefruit, exotic fruits, banana, papaya. Custard. Good, fairly long finish, with earth and genoise. Butter biscuits. Galettes from Pont-Aven.

 

In Short, 

It's pleasant, both typical enough for the distillery to be recognisable, and original enough for even seasoned Caol Ila enthusiasts to find something to their liking. The introductory price is right, so why not give it a try?

Score : 85

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

                                           To Be Listened While Sipping :  

                                           The Specials - Rat Race

Port Charlotte 2003 16 yo

 

 

 

55,8°

Distillery : Bruichladdich - Islay

1st Fill, Refill Bourbon Hogsheads, Sauternes, Sherry, Ex-Bourbon and Virgin Oak Casks

Original Bottling 

Limited Edition 

Single Malt 

Bottled in 2020

Unchillfiltered, Uncoloured, Cask Strength

Peated around 40 ppm

 

 

 

On the occasion of Feis Ile 2020, which took place virtually only because of the pandemic, the distillery launched an online lottery, with lucky winners being awarded the right to buy this 16-year-old for the modest sum of £150. Limited to just 3,000 copies, this edition was a big hit on the auction sites. The maturing process is highly complex, divided into 3 parcels. The first was transferred to Bourbon Hogsheads, then first-fill Bourbon casks, the second is aged in first-fill Bourbon Barrels, then Sauternes casks, and finally the third is a blend of Sherry, Bourbon and virgin oak casks.

 

 

 

Let's Taste It : 

Ocean air, tide, coarse salt, with a hint of hazelnut. Intense iodine. Armenian paper, then the peat rises, bewitching. Milk chocolate, toffee, soft caramel. Candied fig. Light smoke. Behind, a shade of vanilla. Honey. Very suave on the palate, delicate, vinous, woody blackberry, blueberry, but the spices come through, warm, nutmeg, ginger, curry, paprika. Heather earth, sandalwood, wine lees. Very strong and extremely long finish, varnished, very well-balanced, grilled bacon with oozing fat, smoked salmon, and finally some fruits, quinces, cooked apples, caramelised. Coffee aftertaste.

 

In Short, 

It's safe to say that it's very good. The extremely complex maturation process produces a result that is as destabilising as it is original. Unfortunately, the price is violent. When you release a very limited edition of 3000 copies, it encourages speculation.  

Score : 90

                                           To Be Listened While Sipping :

 

                                           Siouxsie & The Banshees - Israel

Octomore 2008 Masterclass 08.2 8 yo

 

 

 

58,4°

Distillery : Bruichladdich - Islay 

French Mourvedre, French Sauternes and Austrian Sweet Wine Casks, Amarone Finish

Original Bottling 

Travel Retail Edition

Single Malt 

Bottled in 2017 

Unchillfiltered, Uncoloured

Peated around 167 ppm

The 2nd version of the 8th batch in the Octomore series, intended for the travel trade, was aged for six years in Sauternes, Mourvedre and Austrian sweet wine casks, then finished for two years in Amarone casks, an Italian red wine. It was made entirely on Islay, from harvesting to bottling. The edition is limited to 36,000 bottles.

Let's Taste It : 

Heavy and pungent wine, this must be the influence of Amarone or Mourvedre. The wood and wine influences mingle, then it evolves towards red fruits, raspberry and blackcurrant, tempered by a bit of iodine, and the peat finally rises. Slightly smoky and charcoal-like, earthy, it marries very well with the heady hints of sweet wine. Red plum skin, damson, muscat grape. Metallic hints, iron filings. This red wine is almost sickening. Fermented fruits. On the palate, tannins, heather earth, blackberries crushed by the sun, blueberries, then some spices, but light, coarse salt, nutmeg. Finally, the Sauternes comes through, but only slightly, white fruits marinated in sugar, gooseberries and mirabelles. Very long finish, but not very strong, on varnished wood and chocolate, fig jam, some orchard fruits.

 

In Short, 

Once again, a prodigious feat has been achieved, with multiple maturation that is nonetheless perfectly balanced. The peat is not at all intrusive, although the red wine casks are a little. For me, a lover of Bordeaux and Sauternes, this is fine, but it may be too much for others. The price is obviously a deterrent.

Score : 91

                                           To Be Listened While Sipping :

                                           Einstürzende Neubauten - Die Befindlichkeit Des Landes

Balblair 15 yo

 

 

 

46° 

Distillery : Balblair - Highlands

Ex-Bourbon Casks and 1st Fill Spanish Oak Butts

Original Bottling 

Core Range 

Single Malt 

Launched in 2019

Unchillfiltered, Uncoloured 

Totally Unpeated

In 2019, the distillery, which until now had only produced vintage bottlings, is launching a regular range. This 15-year-old has undergone exactly the same maturation as the 18-year-old.

Let's Taste It : 

It's immediately rich in fruits, quite greasy and sweet. Vanilla and white fruits, perhaps finished in bourbon barrels? Pear, apple, but also banana, guava and mango. A pinch of various citrus fruits, mandarin and orange. On the palate, the same music, a festival of very ripe fruits. Coated with honey. Spices go unnoticed. Good finish, quite long, woody and caramelised. A touch of dark chocolate and orange, almost earthy. Cocoa beans, mocha, chicory.  

In Short, 

Really nice and pleasant. I really liked it. It's a little less subtle than the 18-year-old, but more straightforward, and more chocolaty at the end. It's a pity, I think the price is really exaggerated.

Score : 85

                                          To Be Listened While Sipping :

  

                                           Tom Jones - Delilah

Elements of Islay 2007 Lg10 12 yo

 

 

 

57,4°

Distillery : Lagavulin - Islay

Ex-Bourbon Barrels

Independent Bottling

By Elixir Distillers 

Limited Edition 

Single Malt 

Bottled in 2019

Unchillfiltered, Uncoloured, Cask Strength

Peated around 38 ppm

 

 

 

The tenth Lagavulin bottling from Elixir Distillers, this is a blend of 3 Bourbon casks. Only 986 bottles were produced.

 

 

 

  

Let's Taste It : 

A nice, fairly fresh nose, with iodine and salt, but you can't really smell the sea, it must be low tide. Rather menthol, coriander, icing sugar, more candy than pastry. Lemon, vanilla, white fruits, everything that befits ageing in bourbon casks. Well-balanced. Very suave on the palate, flower honey, the fruits are heavy, perhaps a little too ripe. Tropical flavours, banana, pineapple, papaya. Heavy finish that moves without tearing, quite long. Damp earth, chestnut cream.

 

In Short, 

An interesting bottling with enough intensity to make you want to come back for more. The price is sweet, but it lacks the complexity of the distillery's annual 12-year-olds.

Score : 87

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

                                           To Be Listened While Sipping :

   

                                                     Hole - Violet

Glengoyne 2008 Provenance Special Selection for The Whisky Trail 10 yo

 

 

 

46° 

Distillery : Glengoyne - Highlands 

Refill Bourbon Hogshead 

Independent Bottling 

By Douglas Laing & Co. 

Limited Edition 

Single Cask

Bottled in 2018

Unchillfiltered, Uncoloured

Totally Unpeated

 

 

 

At Douglas Laing's, the Provenance range brings together Scottish single casks of a relatively young age, around ten years. This one is a Glengoyne aged in Bourbon casks, selected for The Whisky Trail, Scotland's most famous whisky distributor, based in Edinburgh. 342 bottles were produced.

 

 

 

 

Let's Taste It : 

White fruits, lemon zest, grapefruit, coarse salt, damp grass. The Scottish countryside, with green hills as far as the eye can see. A vague impression of iodine, but I must be imagining things. On the palate, pear and white plums, a dash of vanilla. Sandalwood, floral fragrances, daffodils and jasmine. Quite a long finish, with varnished wood and soft caramel. A hint of latte macchiato. Gingerbread. Damp earth. Fig and banana. Liquorice stick.

 

In Short, 

It's really nice and pleasant to drink. I could do with a second glass. Having said that, it's not my thing, not an ounce of peat and aged in bourbon casks, I'm already surprised that I enjoyed it a little.

Score : 84

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

                                          To Be Listened While Sipping : 

   

                                          Willie Nelson - Always On My Mind

Kilchoman 2010 Vintage 9 yo

 

 

 

48°

Distillery : Kilchoman - Islay

Ex-Bourbon Barrels and Oloroso Sherry Butts 

Original Bottling 

Limited Edition 

Single Malt 

Bottled in 2019

Unchillfiltered, Uncoloured

Peated around 50 ppm 

 

 

 

Since 2011, the distillery has been offering every two years this limited edition called Vintage. This is the 5th batch, and each time the whisky is a year older. The first batch was only 5 years old, and the current batch is 4 years older, making it the oldest of all. 15,000 bottles are for sale. 

 

 

 

Let's Taste It : 

A nose of mineral peat, limestone, gravel, plastic and rubber, damp sand, but also shells, guano, rocky iodine and kelp. A cliff-fringed beach, hit by a strong winter wind. On the palate, light vanilla, white plum, juicy apple, it's low tide, the sea is calmer. Peat is behind, with evanescent spices. Nice finish, not overly long, but just the right amount of aggression, with fruit, earth and a peaty substrate. Damp earth, swamp. Light citrus and nutmeg.

In Short, 

I really enjoyed it. The profile is quite similar to that of the Machir Bay, but more refined and subtle. Anyone who appreciates Machir Bay should be interested. Personally, I think it's a bit expensive for what it is.

Score : 85

                                          To Be Listened While Sipping :

  

                                          Placebo - Begin The End

Ardbeg Drum

 

 

 

46°

Distillery : Ardbeg - Islay

Ex-Bourbon Casks and Ex-Rum Finish

Original Bottling 

Limited Edition 

Single Malt 

Bottled in 2019

Unchillfiltered, Uncoloured

Peated around 54 ppm

 

 

 

The Feis Ile 2019 limited edition was finished in rum barrels. Launched in June to coincide with Ardbeg Day as usual, it sold out in less time than it takes to drink a bottle.

 

 

 

Let's Taste It : 

Gritty and vegetal peat. Pungent grasses on muddy gravel. Thick, choking smoke. Black, oily earth. A hint of citrus fruit stuck in a charcoal trap. As the minutes go by, the sweetness of the rum emerges, but remains discreet. Then a certain balance is achieved, between lemon and peat. On the palate, the sweetness is quickly overtaken by fairly strong spices, ginger, coriander and white pepper. Citrus zest. The finish is full of charcoal, but rather short. Mandarin.

 

In Short, 

To my knowledge, this is the distillery's weakest limited edition. The profile is quite similar to An Oa, only a little better, but at the same time it costs two or three times as much. People will tell me that it's not their fault that people are snapping it up, but in my opinion, if you're successful, you make sure you live up to it. That's not the case with this edition in any case.

Score : 87

                                           To Be Listened While Sipping :

  

                                           Eels - Novocaine For The Soul