Octomore 11.3

The nose is amazing. Bright floral caramel and peat. Huge burn from the alcohol followed by a bit hit of peat, yet so much flavour beyond it. Super interesting and enjoyable.

Nose has the richness and balance of a decadent sweets shop with the sharpness of a brisk coastal breeze and the warmth of BBQ smoke all blended harmoniously together; Palate fits the same profile, but the more it opens the more there is to explore within the layers – it’s comfortingly complex; Finish is the lightest part, coming off like a xeroxed xerox of the palate.

It’s 2020. It’s December. Let’s shut this year down with a brand new whiskey (or whisky) every day. It’s my own personal whiskey advent calendar. +7! (I just learned from my daughters how advent calendars actually work.) Dec. 25, 2020 This is the true story of Milliardo’s exposure to scotch during December of 2020. I have brought all of y’all who provided kind suggestions down with me. I call this one: “Milliardo’s Song,” by Drink-182 I never thought I'd see the day My Rip Van Winkle got packed away My BTAC’s on the floor by the wall I never found a way to catch them all I took two years, then hurried up This Octomore is lurking in my cup I'm too impressed not to provide A place for my scotch collection to reside I never cracked OBSK 2019 held more bourbon days Days when I thought scotch was bland I couldn't wait to tell @Ctrexman CA still sucks, Scotland’s okay The trial was over, bourbon won the day I couldn't wait to prove to y’all Please tell @PBMichiganWolverine this is all his fault I never thought I'd drink roast beef Tell @cascode that I like the peat I made a space for Compass Box You guessed right @ContemplativeFox Still can’t pronounce: “Bunnahabhain” Thanks for the rec @Jan-Case anyway I found a home in a Dalmore cult @WhiskeyLonghorn that one is your fault I never cracked OESK I turned down Blanton’s just the other day The day I bought this 11.3 What the hell is happening to me The world is wider than KY The war is over, scotch survived Now I drink Highland Park I can blame that one on @DigitalArc Nose on this is indistinguishable from my memory of Octomore 10, but that’s not a bad thing. I wish I could compare directly. It’s tangy steak sauce, orange, brisket. This is amazing. Body follows directly from that nose. This is the most savory thing I can remember drinking. It feels thick and oily, and by the end, you can almost convince yourself there’s actual chunks of meat swirling around in there. That sounds gross, but I meant it as a compliment. Flavors are heavily smoked barbecue, steak sauce, black pepper. On occasion I can get caramel. Finish lingers. It’s that same smoked barbecue, but there’s a spicy barbecue sauce at the end now, especially on the top of your tongue. This feels like a fancy meal. I could literally drink this beast all damn day. That drink as a whole package was phenomenal. I remember feeling that way about the 10 year too, but my instincts are that this Octomore is fuller bodied in flavor and thicker in mouthfeel. This fits the flavor profile so well, that I can’t imagine Octomore 10 being as perfect on that one fact alone. Looking forward to trying the 11.1 soon, because again... what the hell did you guys do to me? In all seriousness: thanks for you named above and many others for guiding me into the scotch world this December. It’s been eye-opening and a very worthwhile endeavor, and I am very appreciative for you all! ‘Tis the season. I’m day-to-day on my whiskey selection, so if you’re reading this and there’s something readily available out there you’d like me to enjoy/suffer through this holiday season, leave it in the comments. Merry whiskey to all, and to all a beer flight!

Nose: This does not present at all the way I would have expected - there's earth and smoke, sure. But due to the youth and resultant lower levels of brine, it's much more rich and herbal. I'm getting a distinct and soft mint and thyme. For being such high proof, this nose is very approachable - it's not taking your head off. Bready. Vanilla beans. Slightly floral and grassy, but with nothing harsh or "pokey". Pickled ginger. Very subtle honeyed grains and citrus peels. Very dense creamy - salted cultured butter comes to mind. Palate: The dense, rich, rounded earth and peat are here, and the source of that mint reveals itself in phenol - this even has a slightly mouth-numbing sensation that I would is a combo of the alcohol and phenol. Toasted, honeyed cereal grains. There's that ginger again, along with sweet orange peels, coffee, and chocolate are all on deck. Peach cobbler with vanilla ice cream and a sprig of mint. A little iodine and brine come through, though not dominating. Effervescent. Gros Michel bananas, strawberries. The balance here, for being so heavily peated, is phenomenal. The entire palate is coated in rich, oily character, with the space between the middle and back palate really light up. The alcohol provides all the "top-end", while the midrange is really what stands out here, and the foundation is all barley and peat. Meadium-heavy mouthfeel. Finish: Thick layer of ethanol, meyer lemons, earth, and smoke. Some mint ice cream. Fresh wheat bread and cream, buttered cornbread with honey - sweetend grain character with cream slowly fade in and out. Apricots and peaches also start popping in and out. Chocolate, leather, and espresso also swirl in, while the finish hangs out for a long time. Beautiful show. Other notes: I decided to pull the trigger on this bottle as my Christmas gift to myself. And I am thrilled that I did. The peat on this does not at all present the way I expected, and the youth is absolutely not a detriment to the end product. The density, richness, and depth are all excellent and deliver on exactly what the label promises: an intense experience. As I continue to let this open up in the glass, it continues to evolve and provide even more intensity, each sip building on the last, the oils adding another layer to the party. Is this for everybody? Absolutely not. But if you've got the cash and find yourself loving the more intense things Islay has to offer, I'd say go for it. This is good enough that it's tempting me to seek out others in the range, even from prior years. Or even just another bottle of this... Really fun bottle.

Overpowering vegetal peat on the nose. I feel like it just burns my nose - extremely overwhelming. Sharp phenol. It smells mossy, damp, with a turnip odor. A hint of sage. Rock salt and black pepper. It's extraordinarily pungent and the scent lingers. Perhaps a hint of cabbage. Smoked fish. Iodine and antiseptic. One does not "nose" this, one endures it, in an effort to learn its secrets. On the palate- dense herbal smoke, but it's dry smoke - sage. Peat, phenol. Very strong, but considerably milder than I was expecting from nosing it. Salt and crackling white peppercorns. An unexpected hint of caramel, with cracking fresh barley, crispy salted barley crackers, a hint of shortbread - a surprising hit of Stroopwaffels. I was not at all expecting the sweeter flavors, though they are most welcome and pleasant surprise. I get the vegetal raddish/turnip flavors in the finish. The finish is extremely long - dry smoke, rock salt, sea salt, barley malt. It takes over your whole mouth and lingers like a smokey cloud over the ocean. The smoke seems like dry wood smoke as it lingers in your mouth. I also get smoked fish emerging late. It's surprisingly drinkable, provided that you like peat, given the unrelenting nasal assault. I could drink this all day - fortunately, a little goes a long way. I have been looking forward to my next bottle of Octomore since I picked up my first one last year. This one does not dissapoint!

Quite the whiskey. Unlike anything I've ever had before. Without water, an untamed beast and a rollercoaster of flavor and complexity. The smoke is ever present, but not more than a Laphroaig, Ardbeg or Port Charlotte; if anything, this is more refined which is strage given this whiskey's youth. Add a little water and this opens up to something so different and so beautifully complex from nose through finish. After adding the water, I get a nose ofcotton candy, Band-Aids, and a vast floral component; somehow unimaginably beautiful. This is something you must try if a fan of peat or looking for a whiskey that pushes the boundaries of possibilities.