Talisker 18 Year

Backlog. I remember it was exceptional.

Smell: orange, salt and brine Taste: salty, toffee, brine and smoke Finish: chilli aftertaste, almost tingly on the mouth

Nose Light iodine, red apple, mandarin orange, field flowers, strong vanilla, icing sugar and molasses Taste Oily, sweet, very malty, light peat, some ashy notes, nutmeg, all spice, white pepper, lemon notes Finish Very long and lasting, pepper, all spice, light camp fire notes Really like this whisky. It definitely more mellow then 10 years old and has more complexity to it albeit the flavour notes more subtle and less in your face compared to 10

Nose - sweet peat, fig, sultana, brine, iodine, butterscotch, pear, honey, smoked meat, candied orange, vanilla, allspice, clove, green apple, black pepper, rich malt, mild to moderate ethanol burn. Taste - sweet, oily peat, brine, green apple, pear, fig, plum, nectarine, spiced vanilla, salted caramel, iodine, allspice, kipper, honey cured ham, lemon zest, chili pepper, clove, spicy oak, mint, mild to moderate alcohol bite, finishing medium long with sweet peat, green apple, and cured ham flavors. This is great whisky. While it’s easily identifiable as Talisker, the malt is richer, the peat is subtler, and the spiced, fruit notes are more accentuated. The meatiness is still present, but it has more of a cured ham quality than the greasy, bacony off-note on the 10 year. Interestingly, it reminds me of a rich Speyside like Craigellachie or Benromach. So that’s all fine and good, but I have one major beef with this one. I like the 10 better than the 18 year. I thought this was the case initially, but poured the 10 year alongside and confirmed it. The 18 year is more complex and refined, but it lacks the grunginess that I love on the original. I’m aware that there is significant batch variation with the 18 year (mine is from 2019), and the older bottlings are thought to be superior. I’m also aware that the 18 year is known to deteriorate with time. This particular bottle was opened six months ago, so I doubt oxidation has impacted this significantly. Overall this is great, but I’ll be restocking the 10 year at $60 instead of this at $150, and I’ll be just as satisfied.

Mild peat smooth incredibly complex pleasing flavor. One of the absolute best

Great sweet and coffee flavor