Stop number 96 on the SDT Abhainn Dearg. A newer distillery located on the Island of Lewis in the Outer Hebrides and it is the westernmost in Scotland. The stills were based on designs used by early illicit distillers. Look them up, they are funky looking. This bottle is a 3 year old single cask limited release. Quite an expensive bottle at $250 (glad I wasn’t the one that bought it). Bottled at 46% ABV and is non chill filtered and natural color of pale white wine. The nose begins with a brief hit of sweetness, followed by intense floral notes. Jasmine, orange blossom, honeysuckle and maybe some lavender. Strong, slightly sour oak, vanilla and something like marshmallows or whipped cream. It’s different, but not bad. Those odd stills really make a difference. Vegetal like bamboo shoots or water chestnuts and a little earthy. Honey and barley malt. Damp peat comes through but it’s rather light. Salty, damp wood and a hint of coconut. Barrel char, anise, perfume and a long forgotten memory of bourbon. Water brings out unsweetened raspberry green tea and more honey. The palate is fairly light overall. Earthy, somewhat sour and peaty, but more earthy peat than smoky. Almost no smoke at all. The peat is more like a Highland peat than an Islay peat, but still different than either one. Pears and cinnamon, sour oak and vegetal. Water brings vanilla cream, faint coconut, light fruits, oranges mostly and colada. A hint of pepper and it becomes less sour. A light bodied mouthfeel that is thin and dry. The finish is medium long with light earthy peat, green tea, vegetal and slightly sour. I used the term sour a lot here, but it’s not an unpleasant sensation, just another layer of complexity. Much better than I was expecting. A wealth of flavors for a 3 year old. I would compare this to Hedonism, not so much in flavor profile (although there are some similarities), but in the way it breaks stereotypes. Who would have thought a blended grain whisky could produce the wonder that is Hedonism? The same goes with this 3 year old. How can something so young have so much depth to it? While it’s not even close to spectacular, this is a good whisky. It shows it’s youth, yet also has maturity beyond its years. Looking forward to trying it as a 10 year old. It’s not worth the huge price tag, not even close. Thanks to @PBMichiganWolverine for the sample. A solid 3 Cheers