Nose - fresh peat, rubber, lemon zest, tar, apple, honey, grass, strawberry, vanilla, sweet floral notes, white pepper, moderate ethanol burn. Taste - sweet peat, tar, honey, sour apple, brine, caramel, lemon pith, grapefruit, rubber, iodine, cinnamon, almond, grass, strawberry, black pepper, bitter herbal notes, moderate alcohol bite, finishing medium short with sweet peat smoke, bitter citrus, and tar flavors. This is my first Kilchoman, and I have a weird beef with it. Every time I drink this one, I get a headache, even with a very small amount. I’ve never had that experience with any other quality spirit. Who knows, maybe it’s just coincidence. Regardless, I won’t hold that against it with my rating. This smells and tastes young, but not in a completely negative way. The nose is very bright and fresh with creosote, acrid smoke, apple, and a lemony zing. The palate is effervescent with sweet peat, honey, apple, and more lemon, but it turns bitter here. This leads to a relatively short and forgettable finish. Overall, this is better than average, but nothing special. Compared to another young Islay, Wee Beastie, I like this one less. It’s young, bright, and disappointingly sour and bitter heading into the finish. Never fear. I’m not giving up on Kilchoman just yet. I’ll be reviewing two more interesting expressions starting tomorrow.