Octomore 07.1/208 Scottish Barley

Crisp yet oily sweetness with a whole lot of peat ! Unbelievable . After trying the 6.1 I just had to go pick this one up and I must say what a good call

My experience with Octomore 7.1 reminds me of a time as a kid when I spent most of my paper route money on a cherry bomb expecting to rock the neighborhood, but instead of a mighty blast I got a fizzler. The level of peat on the nose is faint at best and all efforts to release the peat serpent went for not. I tried the “Murray method” (neat), a few drops of water, dilute to 40%, dilute to 30%, a pile of ice, and still nothing. I then summonsed the opinions of 3 friends and we all concurred; the peat in this spirit is very subtle on both nose and palate. Despite this fact, we all further agreed this whisky to be monumental! It’s oily and smooth giving hints of honey, vanilla, and almond with a lengthy, fruity, and effervescent finish. The taste of nobility is unquestionable, but don’t expect to get punched in the face with the peat of a Lagavulin, as one friend put it. Distilleries measure and advertise phenols based on the malted barley after kilning. The new make spirit can drop to 40% of that figure in ppm, and after 10 years it can drop to 20-25%. A handful of different phenols in the spirit also change percentages during distillation and over time creating a myriad of possibilities for new offerings to the peat loving consumer. Isn’t life wonderful?

149,95

It's time for a wonderful whisky tasting flight from the fine lads at Bruichladdich, on the island of Islay. I'm enjoying the Wee Laddie Tasting Collection from these guys, which contains 3 200ml (8oz) samples of their core offerings: Classic Laddie, Islay Barley, and Port Charlotte Scottish Barley Heavily Peated. To run the entire gamut I've also opened a bottle of Octomore 7.1, in a valiant effort to go from unpeated all the way to the most heavily peated whisky in the world. Bruichladdich Octomore Edition 07.1: this is the final Octomore released under Master Distiller Jim McEwan. He decided to go out with a bang after 52 years with the highest ppm Octomore yet- a mind-blowing 208ppm! That's 5x higher than the Port Charlotte I just drank. This bottling comes in at a cask strength of 119 proof and spent 5 years in American oak. It's a bit darker than all the other whiskies (despite being younger) from the flight and slides down the taster glass like syrup over pancakes. I believe I could use this as engine oil in my truck long enough to get to and from my local watering hole when I go on a bender. The nose is unrelenting: smoke, worn leather, tobacco and earthy barnyard hay. It's impossible to detect any subtle flavors at all. I kind of expected smoke to waft from the bottle when I popped the heavy cork. Drinking this beast is incredible. There's tons of smoke, but damn if it isn't unbelievably smooth- a tad unexpectedly sweet and nutty. To be cask strength, I think it would be a crime to add water. It isn't needed to cool it down, nor do I think a drop or two of water would open up a damn thing. This is about peat, smoke and briny, Islay air. You'll take it in as it is and you'll be happy about it. No whining allowed. This is Islay peated scotch that makes no excuses and wouldn't back down to anything else on that wind swept Isle. It may not be for everybody, but any single malt Islay fan should definitely step up to the plate and give an Octomore bottling a go at least once in their lifetime. I absolutely love this juice! Cheers, my friends.