Hellyers Road Peated Single Malt

Good stuff, the peat is closer to some peated Speyside malts rather than Islay though

Rokerig maar niet te. Beetje zuur. Fris.

Outstanding good!

Nose: Peat smoke, soot, slight hints of brine and the faintest iodine. A touch of green apple, vanilla and camphor wood. [The drying glass aroma is fragrantly floral peat smoke to start with, but turns to sooty wood smoke as it drys out]. Palate: Sweet woody smoke on the arrival. There's a spirity chilli burn as it develops together with a light fruity note and lots of crisp seed spices - aniseed, fenugreek, coriander, white pepper. A little chocolate. Good texture. Finish: Medium. Light bonfire smoke that trails into a clean, crisp and slightly spicy/salt/sweet aftertaste. This was produced using peated malt imported from Scotland and it smells (but does not taste) like an Islay. The nose is good and similar to Caol Ila but with less depth and complexity. However it is fresh, crisp and very satisfying with a slightly maritime note. The palate is much less like an Islay, the smokiness being more like campfire smoke than peat-reek. It's well balanced and assured however, and the hot, spicy distillate character of Hellyers Road is particularly well suited to pairing with peat-smoke. It's a very pleasant dram and for me it's by far the best Hellyers Road I've tasted from their "lower tier" core range. Their whisky usually seems too young and simple, with an over spicy palate, but young and hot works well with peat, as is proven here. A recommended dram, if there was a little more complexity throughout I'd give it 4 stars. "Above Average" : 81/100 (3.5 stars)

Had high expectations, but this was thoroughly disappointing. Had my sister pick up a bottle for me on her trip to Sydney and it wasn’t worth the effort - should have had her bring me back a nice Shiraz instead......