Kilkerran 12 Year

Nose: Ruch stone fruits, vanilla, lemon, nuts sherry and a funky oily moss Pallet: funky, sour wood and rotten fruits, peppery lemon Finnish: oily and bitter lemon. Astringent vegetal notes.

I highly look forward to older age statements!

Lots of flavours, complex 4.25/5

Nose: Orchard fruit jams, toasted marshmallows, chocolate s’mores, apricot nectar, white pepper, peppermint/menthol, perfumey red apples, a hint of peat, a herbaceous note (basil), apple juice, oatmeal biscuits, a touch of spicy oak, dry straw, fresh barley grains, hoppy must, unripe Anjou pear, a hint of lemon drops, blood orange peel, grapefruit peel, string beans, tamarind with chilli pepper, cardamom, a touch of sweet earthy tobacco, chocolate biscuits, butter biscuits, shortbread, violets and honeysuckle, slight note of stewed meat, pool chlorine, chilli pepper flakes sweet blueberries and blackberries, sherried citrus peels Palate: Malt sweetness, apple cider, ashy smoke, a chalky minerality, a burst of honeyed malt sweetness, creamy/chewy malt, some medicinal peatiness (plastic bandaids), smoky agave, a touch of toffee, earthy peat, sea salt, pool chlorine, funky honeydew, dark cocoa, sweet blueberry, bittersweet torched plastic, chocolate biscuits Finish: Apple tarts, bonfire smoke, bittersweet note (like wormwood or Campari), tart barley/barley sugar, Smoky green apples

Nose: Bitter Lemon Peel, Honey, White Pepper, Caramel, Apricots, Baked Blackberries Taste: Spicy ginger component and a large amount of maltiness on the arrival. There are faint notes of apricots and plums hiding behind a salty and grassy mid-palate. The whisky closes with moderate rubbery peat. The finish fades out over the course of a minute. The mouthfeel is perfect for this style of whisky. Taste with 2ml of water and 12 minutes: The plum and apricot notes come out more prominently and round out the fast evolution of flavors. A sea salt dark chocolate comes into play on the mid-palate. The finish has become more like ashy smoke than rubbery peat. Very complex and well rounded at the same time. This reminds me of components of Deanston 12 combined with a young sherried Islay. This bottle is also non-chill filtered and natural color at 46% ABV. As the whisky sits in the glass, it transitions from an ex-bourbon profile to an ex-sherry profile. It almost feels like I get to experience two bottles for the price of one. Fantastic.

Great nose. Salty with delicate peat. Slightly sweet with hint of ginger. Bold flavor that rounds out nicely with a few drops of water.