Nose: Ripe berries, rosewater and hyacinth at first. It was a very fruity profile to start with but on further nosing I got more maritime qualities (seaspray, tarry ropes, perique tobacco), salted caramel and soft smoke with a warm and rounded quality like smoked ham. Palate: The arrival was creamy and like the nose it had a fruity sweetness to it (fig jam, sultanas, stewed apricot). In the development this progressed to smoked, glazed pork ribs with a spicy salt and pepper rub. The brine note builds and seems set to dominate but then falls back as Szechuan pepper and mild smoky paprika take charge. The texture is creamy and has very good weight. Finish: Medium/Long. Fruit stewed with spices, aromatic peat smoke and a little pepper. This whisky is unusually fruity for a Talisker, but it's not a crisp orchard fruit style of malt. Instead the fruit notes here are deep and full-bodied with a leathery, tobacco and cocoa foundation. It’s a very agreeable profile and it shows a different side of Talisker that is reminiscent of their Distiller’s Edition, but not quite the same. It's an immediately approachable and easy-to-drink malt that I think would appeal to most palates, but those who like their Talisker to be bone-dry and peppery might find this to be too sweet and maybe a little genteel. It’s certainly not the raging tempest of Dark Storm or 57 Degrees North, but neither is it the refined dignity of the 18 year or 25 year old. This is more a lovable rogue with style. Jack Sparrow, mayhap? I liked this best without reduction, as it seemed most balanced that way. Tasted from a sample generously provided by @DrRHCMadden “Very Good” : 86/100 (4 stars)