Octomore 12.3

Too peaty for my taste.

More subdued than previous Octomores I've had. Less briny and more sherry-forward than earlier .3s. I've only had odd-numbered .3s, maybe those are better?

Flavor for days. Perfectly balanced. One of my fave whiskeys of all time.

Nose - Peppery campfire smoke, machine oil, sweet black peppercorns, earth, sea spray, menthol? (w/ water) Reduces the smoke a bit, adds a bit of lemon but mostly the same Taste - Hot peppercorn ashy smoke, salt, earthy, light lactic sweet, mouth numbing (w/ water) Ashy sweet smoke, earthy, salt, black peppercorns, ash, creamy sweetness, hint of golden raisins, bit of lemon Finish - Heat, fuzzy tingling heat, campfire smoke, Szechuan tingle/burn, salt, generic sweet (w/ water) Lingering salt, earth, ash, lemon Score - 75/100 Final Thoughts - Holy crap this had some heat on it. This 62% felt more like hazmat. Nose hid the proof very well and it felt like it was just a bit muted, notes of black peppercorns and pleasant ashy smoke, bit of black earth/dirt to round things out a bit. Once it hit the palate, you get a burst of black peppercorn ashy smoke, followed by lots of heat and a bit of salt and generic sweetness and then the TV static feeling all over your mouth. This was quite hot and water is definitely needed to proof this down a bit. Water helps reveal some fruit in this and frankly without knowing that there is 25% PX influence I would've never guessed that was there. This feels mostly ex-American whiskey to me with some sort of weird lactic fruit. This felt so good on paper, but maybe just not meant for my palate. Would I drink it if offered? - Maybe Would I specifically order it? - No Would I buy a bottle? - No NOTE - All reviews are done without factoring in price.