Ballechin 2005 11 Year SFTC Bordeaux Cask Matured

Nose - (w/o water) Very light peat, light brine, flamed orange peel, hint of banana, fresh red berries (w/ water) Softer nose, light fruity smoke, light goji berry sweet Taste - (w/o water) Very hot, musty fruity funk, very light smoke, light seaweed, salt, funky orange (w/ water) Weird fruity medicinal bitter smoke, salty funky sweet, musty & metallic Finish - (w/o water) Lingering heat, funky sweet-savory musty fruit, light smoke, saline, toasted seaweed (w/ water) Less heat, weird bitter metallic sweet, salty, musty fruity funk Score - 61/100 Final Thoughts - So this was an interesting one...the initial nose wasn't too bad. It was interesting and didn't seem too weird. That's about where it ends. Once it hits the palate, it's a hot mess of musty fruity funk and adding water only makes it a bit more bitter and musty. It's like they stored this in a cask that had some moss or something growing on the oak as it tasted a bit weird and off. This definitely has this strange umami salty smoky funk that I'm not a huge fan of. Would I drink it if offered? - No Would I specifically order it? - No Would I buy a bottle? - No

Some distilleries click with me some don't. Edradour doesn't. It doesn't do terrible stuff it doesn't do great stuff. Balance, body and complexity is how I rate whiskey and Edradour nearly always falls at the first hurdle. This time is no exception. Still a good whiskey with rich wine really shining through but very disjointed flavor profile. Still my 1st or 2nd pick of this distillery. 3.75 - The individual parts carry the day despite the sum of them not adding up.