Octomore 11.3

Been really excited to try this one for some time. A peathead’s dream dram. I have @ctbeck11 to thank for the opportunity to try this one. On the nose, as anticipated, the peat hits first. Wasn’t sure I’d pick up anything else, but behind the peat is pear, maybe grilled lemon. It’s burns a little on the nose, but it fits with the peaty smoke. It’s like opening the lid of a hot grill to find fruits grilling away. The palate is fairly gentle on arrival, but quickly moves to a burn at the back of the mouth. Peat again is front and center. Lemon seems to be in there, but it’s a little hot to pick up a whole lot. Going to add a little water and see what happens. Ah, much better. The nose shows a little more of the fruit. Again I get peat, pear, lemon. There’s sweetness on the finish, powdered sugar even. I’m reminded of PC10, but don’t have it on hand to compare. I think I like this more, but I’m not sure I like it 4-5 bottles-worth more. I think it’s a great dram, but I wouldn’t say 5-star worthy. I like it better than PC10 and Laphroaig Cask Strength, but not as well as Uigeadail or Cairdeas 2021. As a showcase for peat it does its job, but for that kind of money I’d prefer something with more complexity.

Rating: 17/23 N: A peaty bite with smoke, but it's also light, with floral vanilla apple coming through. And pear. It has a nectar quality to it. A little roast pork with salt and a touch of black pepper. P: Big peat. It gives way to that floral vanilla apple pear flavor, then the peat comes roaring back with smoke and some black pepper. It swirls for a bit, bringing in salted roast pork, then dancing with the floral vanilla fruitiness for a bit. Digging into the peat, it's a dry bitter tartness mainly, but I get a little anise and it feels like some herbs might want to start coming out. It's a bit hot, but never harsh. As I sip this more, the salinity from the pork grows and I start to get some brine as well. F: Peat, slightly floral pear of a juicy nectar quality, and vanilla. Faint pork with salt, black pepper, and mild brine. - Conclusion - This seems like another gimmick whisky. The base distillate is good, but this is young and not all that complex. It has nice core flavors and I do enjoy the big peaty blast, but that's all there is to this. Amrut Peated (17/23) is more mature and balanced than this is, with more nuance to its character as well. That bit of roast pork here really does help, but the youthfulness here with that sweet nectar really does stand out, unfortunately reminding me a lot of Kilchoman. As a double check, I tried Laphroaig 10 (18/23) side by side with this. The Laphroaig was more muddled, but also certainly more mature and complex. Heading back down in the ratings, Nikka From The Barrel (17/23) is richer with some mellower complexity. This is more aggressive with some more campfire character. And obviously more peat. The two are not that far apart in quality though. The Shin 10 (16/23) actually seems pretty close to this. Both have a youthful sweetness to them and then something else behind them. For The Shin, it's the mizunara mostly. For this, it's that campfire and peat. Between the two, I favor this, but they really aren't that far apart. Ugh, I'm still going back and forth on these a bit. Bruichladdich Octomore 10.4 is more punch and aggressive than this is, with a bolder flavor, but also more heat. The question is now whether the comparative mellowness here is a boon or a burden. Ardbeg 10 (16/23) is more complex and mature than this is. I kind of prefer the Ardbeg at first taste. There is a lightness to the Ardbeg though that this doesn't have and the Ardbeg doesn't build in complexity in the same way. It's a tough call. This is a 16 or 17. In the end, I find it to be competitive enough with Nikka From The Barrel and Amrut Peated to earn a 17. But it's also not quite on the level of the Ardbeg 10. Though with water and time some more complexity comes out here, dragging long into the finish. Considering that, I think that this does beat the Ardbeg and this can have its (low) 17. Coming back for my final couple of sips of this, I mostly concur with my prior assessment. I'm more solidly convinced that this is a 17 now, but I'm not really wondering whether it might be an 18. Thank you, @ctbeck11 , for sharing this dram!

Char and campfire on the nose, smoke over peat. Rich and fiery, but a little too strong. Initial smoke hit turns into alcohol burn and spice that flare up way too much for me. Well made and I do enjoy it, but a little overboard on the kick

Briny, peat, sweet. Amazingly smooth for the ABV.

Perhaps my underdeveloped palate could not pick up the beauty of this sought-after expression - moments of brilliance sprinkled into a rush of peat - I’m guessing these get more pleasing with time