Kilchoman Machir Bay

Very peaty smoky front, hint of vanilla

This was my first Islay pickup for this fall season. Never had any of their expressions before this and have heard good things, so here we are. Kilchoman Machir Bay is named after the bay on the west coast of Islay and the associated beach. It’s a mixture of whiskies matured in both ex-bourbon and sherry casks, with the emphasis on bourbon. It’s also notable for the fact that Kilchoman distills their spirit from 100% Islay grown barley. It’s a nice pale straw color in the glass and produces slow skinny legs when given a spin. Its bottled at a respectable 46% ABV. The nose is slightly briny, with lemon zest, floral barley, and a light smoke. There was a noticeable alcohol burn when I first opened the bottle, but that has thankfully faded. The palate is simple but pleasant. There’s a nice honey sweetness with some smoke and a thick mouthfeel. Some malty Biscuit on the back end. Once swallowed, the finish has hot, ashy campfire smoke that fades into a smoky shortbread sweetness. The finish is the best part of this dram. This was $65 online. At that price it seems a little high for an NAS Islay whisky, but it’s also kind of a “craft” whisky when you take the local barley into consideration. Bottom line is I like this, but it’s a little pricey. 3.25/5. Cheers!

I'm going to assume that this is the 2018 release based on the time that I purchased this one, but it isn't indicated anyone on the packaging. Looks like these guys aren't too concerned with capitalizing on vintages. I've had my fair share of the classic Islay malts, so I thought it'd be good to give one of the up-and-comers a shot. Plus, it came with two glencairns. Not too shabby. Nose: Very young, very peaty. Honey, vanilla, black pepper, apple, pear, and butterscotch. Big time lemon and grapefruit citrus as well as salt and black pepper. I'm unable to detect any sherry influence; if I didn't know better I'd guess it's exclusively bourbon-cask aged. Palate: Smoke and oil heavy. Campfire smoke and ash. Some maritime notes of salt and seaweed, complimented by sweeter notes like white chocolate, vanilla, apple and pear. Cinnamon and black pepper toward the end. Still getting lemon, but it's less pronounced than it was on the nose. Finish: Moderate to long. More of the same from the palate; it maintains a nice balance between the spice of cinnamon and black pepper and the sweetness of white chocolate and vanilla. The 46 ABV is enough to give this one a very respectable finish. Overall, this is a solid effort. Based solely on this expression, I'd say Kilchoman can hang with the big boys from Islay. Would love to taste an age-stated bottling from these guys. For reference, I'd liken it to Lagavulin 8; this Machir Bay being a slightly toned-down version of the Lag 8. And in my opinion, that's good company to keep. At $59, this a worthy purchase for any Islay fan. Especially if you like the younger Lagavulin expressions. It doesn't stand out in any way, but is remarkably balanced and has grown on me a great deal since I first opened it. For now, it's a 3.75, but I may bump that up with a subsequent tasting because this stuff has continued to surprise me with each glass. And I did. Bumped up from 3.75 to 4.5. That's a big jump but it just gets amazing with time. Nose, palate, finish. Hits every damn note. Well done. Looking forward to the next Kilchoman expression