DrRHCMadden
Ailsa Bay Sweet Smoke Release 1.2
Single Malt — Lowlands, Scotland
Reviewed
November 11, 2022 (edited November 16, 2022)
A generous pour from my neighbour. I had tried this quite some time ago, but failed to write anything down about it. So it’s good to come back and see what’s going on here. I like the notion of a “scientific whisky” but all whisky is chemistry really so this does have a marketing over substance feel to it.
N: Crisp, juicy and bright. The nose feels clean and delivers a fairly straightforward soft peat with a little campfire and apricot sweetness. Simple and too the point. Well done, but nothing to write home about.
P: Heavy, granular texture. Dry peat that reminds me of a stubble field (harvested wheat) in dry hot summer. There’s a toasty vanilla, some struck matches, and some subtle orange oil spritz (maybe). Water is needed in my opinion it softens the grainy feel brings forward lots of ashy smoke (this tastes a little like a wood smoke now instead of a peat smoke) and unlocks some malty character.
F: The finish is a mild reflection of the palate that is exiting to vanilla and ashy peat. A little pepperiness too. It’s medium, but then it’s gone. It gives me flash backs of my judo days. One second your upright next thing you know you are staring up at the ceiling wondering what just happened. In a flash, this is but a memory.
I don’t really get the point of this. It’s ok. Nothing is particularly wrong with it, except maybe what I found to be an initially granular texture. As I adjusted to the ashy peat though, I acclimatised and that texture lessened. I really don’t get the point though. There is no real character, it’s not a competitive price point. Nothing new is offered by the “science based” approach and smoke and sweet ppm branding. Simply put, it’s boring.
Distiller whisky taste #105
71.4
AUD
per
Bottle
Create Account
or
Sign in
to comment on this review