For me, this one was a bit intimidating based on the label (and a bit cheesy with the design) but I chose to try based off a recommendation from Dan, the manager at my local Primo Liquors. He knows his stuff and makes some good recommendations. This is a mix of Islay malts distilled at Ardbeg, Caol Ila, Bowmore, and Port Ellen.
So the label says the PPM is 40 so I expected a very heavy peat, heavy on the smoke and very light on everything else. For those of you wondering, phenol parts per million will convey the peatiness of a whisky (Whiskey Advocate, Dec. 2017). I expected it to be on the level with an Ardbeg, Jura or Oban but, that was not the case.
So we popped the cork and there is nothing, I mean nothing nosing out of that cork. The bottle wafts up the fragrance of smoke, some salt and a ting on the nose. It's not a bad initial greeting but not what I was expecting.
It was light, very light in color with almost a yellow hue instead of your typical golden. The color lends itself toward the color of hay. The legs were almost non-existent as we swirled in the glass, eventually showing themselves. It was not oily at all. The flavors were slow to move forward and definitely took their time. When they did move out your senses were greeted with notes of sea spray on a heavily windy day along with the taste of the sea in your mouth, iodine tang with a smoke finish. It continues to acquaint itself with a seduction that is usually reserved a sumptuous meal that is heavy in charred meat. While I am not a huge red meat eater this whisky really evoked feelings of sitting down with a plate of red meat that had been cooked over an open flame on a slow turn.
The second tasting swirled around with the taste of nutmeg, butter, and cinnamon in my mouth. If I had not poured it myself I would have thought someone had switched whiskies on me! It was quite the surprise. At no point during my tasting did I find the peat to be overpowering or excessive in any way. What it is, is a good introductory whisky for anyone wanting to grow in their knowledge and flavors of Islay. There is very little burn as it goes down and the peat is so well balanced that you really do get a feeling of drinking multiple whiskies at one time.
Douglas Laing has done a very good job of blending malts from several Islay distilleries without losing the notes from the individuals. I am not sure how they managed it but kudos to them.
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