LeeEvolved
Talisker 18 Year
Single Malt — Islands, Scotland
Reviewed
April 1, 2018 (edited August 4, 2018)
Original review from March 2016:
A drop or two of water really opens this up like a BBQ pit. I don't get the sea salt notes like most Islay single malts, but damn it finishes very smoky and smooth. It's like a long, fireside chat that you wish wouldn't end. I could sip on this with a big ole grin until I pass out.
Update April 2018:
I didn’t transfer the original review above from a couple of years ago because I didn’t do as thorough of a job as I like to do now. But, as luck would have it, my buddy @Generously_Paul recently sent me a fresh pour of this one so I could do a proper review.
The problem was that he was using a preservation gas on this bottle before sending me another sample and we both agree that it had a negative effect on his bottle.
What I do remember most is the deep, smokiness that permeates the entire sip from nose to finish. Paul’s sample felt like it has gone somewhat flat and it really suppressed all the barrel and sea notes I’ve grown to expect from every Talisker. I remember my original bottle really being a quality whisky, so I still feel comfortable giving this 4.5 stars, but I guess I’m going to have to find another pour somewhere if I really want to sit down and update my notes completely. One day I’ll seek out another bottle. I still highly recommend this one. Cheers and thanks for reading through what is essentially a Seinfeld review- I basically didn’t write anything about the whisky, lol. Now, where’s my residual check @Distiller?
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Nice one @LeeEvolved - had to do a double take that you recommended adding a drop or two of water :)
@Generously_Paul Yeah, I have about 40 bottles open at the moment at various levels and I treated them all generously with pure argon about 6 months ago. I've noticed that several of them that are very low have still gone a bit "flat", much as I would expect with regular oxidisation. Inert gas is almost certainly a valid treatment, but you just needto use a whale of a lot, and re-gas the bottle after every pour. That gets expensive. Probably just better to call your mates in and have a whisky weekend to finish up the dying bottles :-)
Very interesting @cascode. Sounds to me like my efforts were in vain. I did give a generous blast of the gas and I also use paraffin wax tape around the cork to help seal it. I suspect saving whisky for 2 years simply is not a good idea and I need to consume each bottle within 6 months. Live and learn I suppose
@Generously_Paul I'd be surprised if the inert gas mix causes any problems. It's more likely that the way these products are used with wine is not directly applicable to whisky, and the contents of the bottle still oxidized over time. These little inert gas treatment canisters are only meant to be a band-aid fix to extend the life of an opened bottle of wine for very short period, so the instructions are to apply just a second or two squirt of gas to a bottle. This is probably insufficient for whisky that will be stored for months and we should be giving whisky bottles 5-10 seconds of treatment so the inert gas is of sufficient quantity to push most of the oxygen out of the bottle. However, this would exhaust the little canisters pretty quickly. KT66 suggested a while back that he and I go halves on a cylinder of medical grade argon and experiment with really serious inert gas treatment for whisky. We didn’t proceed at the time, but it might be worth looking at again – it’s actually not that expensive.
@PBMichiganWolverine I doubt temperature is an issue since I keep all of my whisky in my basement. They all stay fairly cold in the winter and cool in the summer when the AC is on. Whatever the case may be, I’d rather take my chances with natural oxidization than use this stuff again, knowing what it did to my Talisker 18 and I think it also ruined my bottle of Corryvreckan a while back
@Generously_Paul CO2?? I’m a bit surprised, since that would trap heat and increase the temperature
It’s a mixture of N2, CO2 and Ar. I’m not using it anymore. I refuse to ruin another bottle even though this stuff claims to preserve wines.
Prbabaly either Ar or He or N. Not many other options.
@cascode - probably a good idea. Although I’m not sure exactly what @Generously_Paul used on his bottle.
Hmm, this is one of my top shelf whiskies but my current bottle has been half full with a layer of argon for almost 12 months now. Thinking I'd better give it a taste real soon in case gas treatment is not so effective long term.
In my review of Talisker 10 from a few months ago, both water and ice had a profound effect on the spirits integrity, and not in a good way. I was surprised at the whisky’s volatility.
The first few drams from this bottle blew me away. I loved it so much I only wanted to drink it on special occasions so I just let it sit with the gas I thought would preserve the flavors. Trying it again later really was a shock. Flat is the perfect descriptor.
They def do good NAS's :-). I think I just had a dud batch as others have rated highly. I followed up with a Caol Ila 25 which definitely delivered!
Wow, that seems backwards. I’d think the 57% would impact the flavor, but I guess that’s because the younger spirit can take the extra ABV. Perhaps Talisker makes a better candidate for NAS than others. That’s good to know.
Yeah but the problem with my bottle was the harshness of the alcohol overwhelmed the delicate flavour of the spirit. I just had another drop now and the imbalance is still there unfortunately. Whereas the 57% North for example had none of that - pure flavour negligible alcohol impact
I actually think that’s one of Talisker’s high points, though- they take the peat and salty notes and really refine them. That’s what makes them a different animal from most Islay distilleries IMO. That being said, I don’t think I’ve ever let an opened bottle sit around long either. Oxidation is probably not kind to a Talisker. I just don’t like the flat notes I got from Paul’s sample. It killed the ocean aspects that are a Talisker trademark.
Yeah I ended up being a bit disappointed with the 18. It's mellowed it's astringency a fair bit over time but the flavour just wasn't as impactful as it's younger brethren and that part hasn't changed a lot.