Bowmore 12 Year

A nice lightly peated whiskey that is quite enjoyable.

Solid overall and worth the $50-$60 price range but the many "flat" or "mild" reviews are accurate. The vanilla and stone fruit leads things off in a very subdued fashion. There's a peach cobbler feel, given the salty caramel richness. It's warm but not at all spicy. Faint honey and citrus. The peat is enough smoke to remind you but not overpowering, but also not enough for me. It's low proof so a very balanced and smooth sip; this is also what makes me think it's just "solid." I had the 18 on my list of future purchases and this leads me to believe it's worth the price for the added years.

Typical Islay whiskey, peated

Light peat and salted caramel

N: Lemon wood polish, bitter (harsh) medicine notes, caramel apple, buttered white bread toast, and just a hint of tropical fruit. White tea, honey, cracked black pepper. Something like a wet cardboard smell. Few more hard swirls and I get a lemon-orange citrus cream. P: Little flat on entry, but after a second... Smoked caramel with lemon juice spritzed all over it. Red apple, honey, cracked black pepper, toffee, and a bread pudding made with a dark bread. Finish brings a big, round caramel and butterscotch note - seriously feels like you're sucking on a candy. Then the lemon with a bit of that wet cardboard note, some black pepper and/or ginger spice, and some faraway sort of amorphous notes of Islay peat smoke (burning tires, medicine, tar, iodine, etc.) Respect to Bowmore for still doing at least some on-site floor malting. For me, there's just too much lemon in this. Not my favorite. But the profile is interesting generally for being something a little different for an Islay. This bears very little to no resemblance to the big and beasty Ardbegs, Lags, and Frogs. It doesn't have the subtlety of Laddies and Kilchoman. Comparatively, it's a little flatter of a profile with less range and less pop than those houses. It just feels like a little less-than in comparison. I doubt I pick up this bottle again, but I'm curious enough I may move up the core range and see what I find. _______ Please come join a bunch of regular Distiller reviewers are chatting spirits in real time on Discord: https://discord.gg/4nfePCdyKM. (If the link is expired, post a comment and I will post a new one.)