Rating: 15/23 N: A bit of alcohol, but also plenty of fullness with faint tangerine, a little bitter, dry barrel or perhaps dirt, and some herbal grain. I kind of expected more complexity here, but it's a fine nose. This is a less sweet nose than Bruichladdich Bere Barley 2008's, but the richness is comparable. P: Rich, kind of oily, some nuttiness. Bitterness that leads into a bit fo alcohol. There's some toasty grain making up the core of the richness. This is much more the typical scotch profile than the other barleys offered. Light tangerine with some faint floral character leading into a little bit of vanilla. Faint apples. There are some nice baking spices in the cinnamon range with a hint of nutmeg. Maybe some white pepper. It could be that because some vegetal herbal character is here and it's really nice. Unfortunately, there's a clear alcohol bitterness mixed in with that oiliness. It isn't actively bad,= or harsh, but it's just there, distracting from the rest of what is otherwise a really competent scotch. F: Toasty grain with faint vanilla sweetness and a touch of creek water. Oily alcohol bitterness. Not the most interesting finish and the alcohol is a bit of a bummer, but it's pretty competent. - Conclusion - This is essentially the Bere Barley, but not quite as good. Whereas the Bere Barley is at least as good as Loch Lomond 12 (16), thus is definitely not as good as Loch Lomond 12. So 16 is too high for this. I didn't expect to have to get the Dewar's 15 The Monarch (13) back out, but here it is. Oh yeah, this solidly beats the Dewar's 15. The balance here is way better and the alcohol isn't as present. This can't be lower than a 14. Speaking of which, Bruichladdich Organic Barley 2009 (14) is closer in quality to this than I'd expected with its nice complexity. The harshness and lightness definitely make this this winner, but the Organic Barley isn't that far away. Considering that, I think this earns a 15.