(Good Spirits Co. Glasgow – Virtual ‘Fools Rush In’ Tasting, 01 April 2021). This was £18 for a 20cl bottle. The sister distillery to Arran are producing this peated new make to give a glimpse of the flavours the new distillery will be producing in their whisky in a few years time. So, we have a while to wait, but it’s looking promising at the moment. This tasting was for April Fool’s Day. The GSC set up an amazing line-up of drinks - each with their own ‘quirky’ nature. The line-up included Pino Grigio blush, Pinotage, Marsala wine, pot still vodka, botanical spirit, South African Whisky and a new make spirit. All great examples of their craft in their own right. Nose: Smoke, barley, sweet grist, peat, BBQ Palate: Peat! Peat! Peat! Alcohol heavy, very malty, char smoke, BBQ meat, chicory. There’s a green/herbal quality to the spirit. Finish: Ash/peat, BBQ meat. Moves towards charcoal on the aftertaste This new make tastes like a Mescal - with a kick!!! There’s a lovely ‘green’ hit to this that could easily be mistaken for an agave spirit. It already has more whisky notes than a typical new make, but if you’d told me it was a Mescal, I’d definitely believe it. Needs a little care when tasting, it’s 63.5% but tastes much smoother than its ABV. Fab! Came second out of the seven drinks, with 26% (5 votes) of the final vote for favourite of the night. 58% (11 votes) of those present said they enjoyed the spirit.