Talisker Distillers Edition

Finished in Amoroso sherry casks (not Oloroso), this 2014 Distillers Edition weighs in at the typical 45.8% ABV Talisker is know for. The color is honey gold but I do not know if it is natural color or not. Also no word if it is chill filtered. The first thing I asked myself when I first nosed this single malt was, is this really Talisker and not Glenfarclas? Sherried fruits and sherried oak. Nutty with raisins and dates. Bitter orange/grapefruit peel. Incredibly similar to Glenfarclas, but the sherry influence is less intense. Very similar profile but just not as in your face with the sherry. A light malty character too. There was something else that was different though. It took me a while to figure out what it was and then it hit me. Peat! Not smoke like that typically found in Talisker, but an earthy peat. It was so covered and muted that I almost missed it, but once I found it there was no losing it. After the level in the glass neared the bottom I was able to get a light maple syrup and cinnamon, like a room temperature French toast. Very odd for Talisker. The palate was equally non Talisker like. Semi sweet up front with the typical Talisker pepper creeping in. Fairly mild at first, but it picks up steam the more you drink. Sherried oak and light fruits. The same phenomenon that happened on the nose happened on the palate, the peat just showed up out of nowhere. Again more of an earthy peat and not really any smoke. Very odd indeed. A nice oily mouthfeel at first with some spice. Turns dry though. Again, like the Glenfarclas 25, the finish really let me down. Long finish that is quite dry. Some sherry, pepper, light peat, maybe some citrus, but very bitter. The bitterness just hangs around and makes me want to wash it away with water. I'm not really sure how to score this one. It's more like a lightly peated Highland/Speyside malt than an Island malt. Again, very un-Talisker in my opinion. I would not seek out a bottle. I would much rather stick with the 10 YO which is a solid whisky at a reasonable price. I do want to thank Lee for sending me the 2oz sample that this review is based on. It's good, don't get me wrong, but not great and not what I want from a Talisker. I would give it a 3.75, but the finish killed it. 3.5

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