Kilkerran 12 Year

Smooth texture Apricot Fruity

NEAT NOSE - Pear, Apple, Honey, welcoming Aged Leather and an inticing funk that I can’t pick out. PALATE - Oily and Viscous. It feels sticky and syrupy as it rolls around on the palate. The pear, apple and honey come through on the palate along with a surprise of a very light brown sugar. FINISH - Vanilla, lightly salted butterscotch toffee and a flash of peat smoke at the very end. BUY? - Absolutely. BUY AGAIN? - Absolutely. SUMMARY - I haven’t had too many scotches but I am trying to grow my palate and appreciate new things. This is my first Campbeltown Whisky and wow! This dram is incredibly complex, inviting, and interesting. There is so much flavor here and so much character. The mouthfeel is unbelievable for the ABV/age and I’m looking forward to finding a 16 year in the wild because I can only imagine what that would taste like. If you see this, buy it! I look forward to revisiting this time and time again to see how it develops and what more notes I could pull out and discover from this beautiful whisky!

Autumn. I recognize more and more the Springbank legacy. Or is it just my imagination?

KILKERRAN 12-YEAR (Last reviewed 7/26/22) If I’m seriously tasting a whisk(e)y—which is more often than not—I’ll do it over the course of two or more days, since taste can be impacted by a variety of factors over time, including food, drink, gum, smoke, or anything else that can go in the mouth or nose, in addition to physical changes such as nasal congestion. I typically note off-the-cuff adjectives related to the color, aroma, and taste that I experience on the first day, and then return to see if these are confirmed or augmented, and then flesh out the details. With Kilkerran 12, I’m not straying far from my initial review; even if the words are different, many of my impressions are the same as they were a couple years ago. Kilkerran 12 shows a beautiful golden amber hue, like an aged Chardonnay, right around Pantone 123. When first nosed, I’m reminded of Teddy Roosevelt’s foreign policy: “speak softly, but carry a big stick.” This whisky commands your attention with sensations of both lightness and power. Fruits galore with notes of apple crumble, candied lemon, pears, honey, banana chips, saline, light smoky peat, dried apricot, guava, hay, and a touch of vanilla extract. (The pears reminded me of Oban 14, so I poured a splash for comparison.; the Oban transmogrified the smoky peat to a more meaty element somewhere between bacon and smoked ham. Taste context redux). The attack on the palate is like the hearty handshake of a friend not seen in years: gregarious, unencumbered, and energetic. It’s also somewhat viscous—not what you want in a handshake—and I’ll spare any additional similes. There’s some sweet wood on the palate, with a flavor reminiscent of hoarhound candy or a Ricola cough drop. There’s a little nutmeg going on and a gentle white pepper kick. Finishes long: the gentle smoky peat reemerges, as do the salt and banana chips. Online prices for Kilkerran 12 range from $60 to $110. I myself don’t see it often, and I don’t recall what I paid for it. Taking the average of those two amounts, would I buy it again? Yes sir. Not only because Campbeltown whisky is today quite small in terms of production, but because it, like Springbank, offers flavor profiles not quite captured in other areas. 4.25 on the Distiller scale—a little less than my 2022 review. 46% ABV. Non chill-filtered. No e150 coloring. All spirits tasted neat in a Glencairn glass.