Octomore 07.3/169 Islay Barley

Just one of the best peated whiskies ever.

Stop number 48 on the SDT, and the last of round three, is Bruichladdich, specifically Octomore. Bruichladdich is an Islay distillery that produces a wide range of products. From their unpeated Bruichladdich line, to the peated Port Charlotte and finally the super heavily peated Octomore. 07.3 is made with 100% locally grown barley, peated to a level of 169 ppm and then matured 5 years in a combination of ex bourbon and Spain red wine casks. Bottled at a whopping 63% ABV, natural color of golden straw with a little peachy color, and non chill filtered. The nose is surprisingly smooth for being such a high ABV. Delicious red wine notes. Light peat smoke (light considering the ppm level and when compared to the likes of Ardbeg, but strong compared to say, Glenmorangie). Warm vanilla, strawberry/peach jam, lemon cakes. Salty sea spray and seaweed. Dry grass/hay, a little medical and ashy. There is a little sweet toffee and it’s a tad floral. A menthol like coolness to it as well. If you add water the fruity notes come through more and you get some charred oak. The smoke is tamed, but not covered up. The high ABV makes itself known on the palate. A hot and spicy arrival followed by a big puff of peat smoke. Ashy, barrel char/oak. Salty/sweet BBQ sauce and black pepper. Some low level grilled fruits like peaches and apricots. A little ginger and honey, slightly floral and some red wine type tannins. Despite it being hot on the tongue, it has a medium bodied mouthfeel. Oily and mouthwatering. Medium length finish, shorter than I expected. Smoky, salty and ashy with a hint of those red wine casks. While this is certainly not a bad scotch in any way, it just didn’t wow me. Those outrageous ppm numbers just don’t translate into more detectable peat/smoke than an Ardbeg or Laphroaig. I suspect the spirit stills may have something to do with that. If the stills over at Bruichladdich are taller or narrower than its south coast brethren, the heavier compounds won’t carry over into the lyne arm, leaving them in the still. Just speculation of course. I suspect it may also suffer from overall youth. At just 5 years old it might not have the time it needed to pull all those wonderful flavors from the wood in which it slumbered. I’d like to try the 10 year old Octomore and compare. Though I will say this, that little 2 oz sample was plenty to get me good and buzzed! Thanks to @Telex the sample. This is somewhere between a 4-4.25 Cheers

Well well well, if it isn’t my favorite peated whisky. Delivered to my doorstep by the grumpiest FedEx man on the planet. Bruichladdich Octomore 7.3 Islay Barley. This one comes in at 169ppm (phenol parts per million). It could, and it should, rock your socks. Thanks to my new brother (from a different mother) Telex for this glorious sample. I absolutely love Octomore. I put that stuff on everything: from breakfast cereal to ice cream sandwiches. There’s nothing in this world that wouldn’t be improved upon by a little spritz of the Octo sauce. This release was no different. In fact, this one goes right near the top for me. All the crazy peat smoke, brine and medicinal notes you expect are there and in full effect. The part that wowed me was the extra sweetness from the wine barrel. It manages to make its presence known through all that crazy peat. And I love it. My love for peated, port barrel finished whisky grows every time I try a new one and this Octomore is the epitome of all that love. It all works so well for me. I don’t want to get into all the crazy tasting notes because, well, this is Octomore. If you’ve tried one you know about what you’re in for. This one just dialed it all up to 11 in my mind. I’d need to have a sample of all of them in front of me before I would ever try to dissect each one. What a glorious day that would be. A gigantic thanks to Jason for ponying up this bottle for our little group to sample. This one took the round for me. 5 triumphant stars! Cheers, my friends.

Thanks to the newest member of our trading team, Jason, I got to sample this one tonight. We're in round 3 of knocking off every active Scottish distillery, with maybe a few more rounds to go. This one is really perplexing. I don't dislike it, but not sure I like it either. It's like Bruichladdich was experimenting, and decided to put this out as "what the heck, it might just work". Have you ever had durian fruit? It's this big aromatic fruit from SE Asia. It's sold at the all the fruit carts in Kuala Lumpur. When it's opened up, it smells like gym socks. But everyone around you is eating it and loving it. So...is it good? Is it just you not liking it, when clearly everyone else is? and when you finally have it, it's a strange one, where you just don't know if you like it. That's what this reminded me of. Having durian in Kuala Lumpur. Ok...so the best part is the nose. ( clearly unlike the durian). Lemon and peat. Clean. Crisp. Then the palette carries through that lemon crisp, with a STRONG peat backbone. But I think I just realized something. Just because it has 169 ppm doesn't mean it's any more depth in peatiness than an Ardbeg or Lag. Ppm is indicative, but not the only metric. So it's at the finish this has its WTF moment. It's strange. Not bad strange, or good strange. Just strange. Like durian. I have no idea what to make if it. Thanks Jason for the experience...and taking me back to my college years backpacking through SE Asia and having durian.

Tasted at WhiskyFest San Francisco 2017 Peaty Not too smoky More “earthy” than Port Charlotte Islay Barley More so than

Not a 2. I would never choose it over a 2. Not nearly as peated.