Nose: Woody, bonfire peat but with a soft, sweet character. Some dried fruit, cured bacon, vanilla nougat and sherry notes but primarily it's the peat you notice. Over time a pine aroma evolves. The dry glass is like a burnt-out campfire. Palate: The palate is sweet, soft and smoky on the arrival with dark fruit and raisins in abundance. There’s quite a bit of sweet orange juice as well and some tropical notes. However there is no development at all. The arrival just tails into the finish. The texture is very light but enjoyable. Finish: Short. The ashy, smoky, fruity notes from the arrival drift towards the distance but stop dead in their tracks just before reaching the horizon. There is a mild peppery flavour sitting in the background throughout. You could be harsh and say the nose on this has a one-note quality, but it’s a very nice one-note. Yes it lacks complexity but there are distant memories of Bowmore (good Bowmore, I hasten to add) and even Lagavulin. It has that rich, dark floral profile … but that’s about all. However it is a good nose and there are no off-notes at all. The peat smoke very adroitly adds a touch of dryness to the profile which balances the innate sweetness of the Glasgow distillate. The palate is simpler and a little bit of a letdown for me. It lacks complexity even more than the nose, but that’s not a fault as such. The problem is that it also lacks weight. The palate and finish are watery and shallow in texture and it seems like the whisky is somehow hollow. There is certainly nothing bad going on here, and for a young whisky from a young distillery it is a great effort. I’m enjoying this dram (which needs no water, by the way), but at the moment it is not a whisky that I would buy for neat sipping. Then again, it would be a very friendly introductory smoky whisky for beginners. It’s good, competitively priced, but just not interesting enough yet. At the moment I see this as mainly a competitor against Monkey Shoulder and the like … the more famous smoky single malts have nothing to fear from this newcomer for now, but give the distillery time. There is a spark of greatness here. “Above Average” : 82/100 (3.25 stars)