Bowmore 17 Year White Sands

Nose: honey, vanilla, light smoke, citrus, coastal notes. Mouth: Salt, salt and salt, light peat, vanilla and citrus again, some delicate fruits, oak is in background. The sweet notes are messing with me at they would appear to be from an old and too often used sherry cask. A bit too low abv. This edition at 48% would be a wow. Final: a lot of salt again and some wood ripe. Citrus aciditt in background.

Oh dear Bowmore... how could you do this to me after i gave you a perfect score on your Devil's cask iii? Got my hands into this expression, another Bowmore that promises but can't deliver. Although it is not a bad dram, you just have to wonder why a 17yo costs $86 on whisky exchange. Well.... Bottled at 43%abv, tawny color. On the nose, it is maritime and coastal. Sea foam, beach, sand, slightly peated and a little orange. Can't blame them on naming this one "white sands" On the palate, peat, pepper, ashes, gun powder, meat with salt. Aftertaste is very very short, salty. Overall this dram could be better, but i guess is good for $86, but you can get better (like your old friend lagavulin 16yo). My score for it: 74 out of 100.

Very sweet, not bad but not a whisky for me

Smokey, a little bit of a bite, a little fruity

With such an important aging, it's a pity they did not have the courage to maintain the natural color. The peat festively greets the nostrils as soon as the nose is approached, almost immediately dominated by a pleasant fruity, tropical, very warm and soft note, accompanied by the sweetness (almost cloying) of toffee. The peat really disappears in a flash, you have to go and look for it under this blanket of molasses, but there is. Strangely, no marine or salty profile, at least for me. Instead, we find it on the palate, where tropical fruit (more balanced than the sense of smell) lies on a not very accentuated salty note, with the smoke always light, almost ethereal, in the background. The white sands recalled in the name (in reference to those of the coast of Laggan Bay on Islay) would lead you to think of a strong marine profile, especially considering the aging in Vault No.1, but here is the fruity sweetness to be the master. By letting the whisky breathe, the peat becomes (pleasantly) more present, taming the sweetness on the palate. The finish is unexpectedly bitter and dry, with the smoky note that lasts long enough.

Really smooth, oaky, not super peaty