Reverend357
Port Charlotte SC:01 2012
Single Malt — Islay, Scotland
Reviewed
December 20, 2023 (edited December 22, 2023)
Oh boy, here we go. Just yesterday I had my neighbor over and he wanted to try something that would kick his ass. I had 3 open bottles for that...The Classic Laddie, Laphroaig 10 and Lagavulin 16. He described the Laddie as "floral and interesting", and I can see that in the Port Charlotte as well (he ended up hating the Laphroaig, and drinking half a bottle of Lagavulin 16. Good for me, I do not like Lagavulin, that bottle needed to get more empty).
I had a bit of the Laddie as well, so it might still be in the back of my head when I was trying the Port Charlotte, and as much as I like Bruichladdich, Port Charlotte just takes the Cake. Now I rally want to open that bottle of the normal 10 on my shelf.
On the nose, there is this almost hard to catch spike of warm, freshly baked brioche. Slightly sweet, slightly bready. And then the peat hits you in the face. Seaweed, Salt, Peppercorn. The gang is here.
On the taste it starts out surprisingly light. Honeyed oats, zero ethanol burn, hints of Basil and Sesame, just a bit of salt, some nuts that I cannot put, somewhere between almonds, hazelnuts and maybe cashews, but those tend to be sweeter. Not quite as dark as walnuts. Macadamia maybe? There is also some wood and leather in here. I like me some leather.
Aftertaste is a bit on the bitter side, with some light sweetness coming through every now and then, and some char. Lasts an eternity.
So, yeah, Port Charlotte may have the chance to kick Laphroaig off the first spot of my favorite Islays. We will see.
100.0
EUR
per
Bottle
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