Kilkerran 8 Year Cask Strength (56.2% ABV)

Tasted at The Whisky Show London 2018

It starts very well from the color, a beautiful bright golden yellow, a real pleasure to be admired in the glass, better under a natural light. And despite its important alcohol content, alcohol does not sting on the nose, while a dance of earthy, herbaceous aromas, grafted onto a soft and sweet, almost buttery peat. It is truly amazing that the almost 56 degrees don't bite, especially thinking of other lighter whiskys in which alcohol is instead felt right away. On the palate the turbidity is accentuated, the grass gets wet with sea water always remaining on the sides of vanilla sweetness, with a touch of dried fruit and apple. Furthermore, alcohol that enhances and does not cover, accompanying the aromas with an elegance that, given its young age, can only amaze. Close your eyes and enjoy all the flavors that surround your mouth. At the end, the peat accompanies you for a long time, always with its marine note and a hint of sweetness. The empty glass to be smelled with pleasure.

90/100

Here’s another powerful sample sent to me by my friend @Telex, from Maryland. I’ve had some pretty good luck with my rather limited experience with Kilkerran so when he offered me a young, yet powerful, cask strength- well, I had to jump at the chance. This particular offering is pale yellow in the Glencairn and doesn’t really give up much leg action, due to the high 56.2% ABV. It’s also pretty oily. The nose started with a hard hit from the alcohol, even after 15 minutes resting in the glass. There was a steady draw of sweet corn to start things out, and that made me very wary, but finally some juicy, tropical fruits came shining through in a big way. You really need to give this some time for the alcohol heat to subside. I suppose you could use water to achieve the same result, but that’s not me and we don’t need another long-winded take as to why...lol. The palate was also pretty darn hot, yet it stayed surprisingly smooth the entire sip. There’s a thick, oily mouthfeel but it’s very woodsy. The sweet fruits hang around after the swallow, but battle the heat to see which will stay longer. The finish is long and dry. Oak pepper spices and the faintest fruit notes remain while I tried to catch my breath. It’s hot, folks. I’m not sure I’d want a full bottle of this, it’s just not complex enough to get past the heat. I would have to break my own rule and add significant amounts of water to try and enjoy/finish a bottle. Thanks again to Jason for the pour. I’ll give it 3 stars at cask strength, but I believe it could be better enjoyed with water or ice, but I just don’t roll that way. Cheers, my friends.