1901
Talisker 18 Year
Single Malt — Islands, Scotland
Reviewed
February 9, 2019 (edited October 21, 2024)
Call out your order to your snooty waiter in a swish restaurant and you'll more than likely hear him say: "Ahhh, exquisite taste, Sir".
If I was a barman and someone asked for a Talisker 18, I'd say the same thing.
Only I’d mean it. I’d really mean it.
The nose is more muted than I expected. It is beautifully briny, with some gentle, sweet smoke, ice cream (vanilla), and some light wood as the Glencairn empties.
The taste is where this dram excels. I think @Reverend357 put it best: "The nose is rather humble, no hint at what's about to happen". Humble though the nose may be, the palate has the full-on charm, poise and purpose of Roger Livesey as Torquil MacNeil, Laird of Kiloran.
Oily in the mouth, the flavours are orange, peat smoke, salty sweet, developing into strong black pepper - chillies even - really fiery I thought. The sweetness, long pepper, and tinge of smoke continues into the finish and are joined by some oak and particularly a lovely medicinal taste at the very, very end.
I'm not a completist by any means, but with this dram I think Talisker may be my favourite distillery. Whether you're a woman, a man, or a single-celled organism; at some time or another, every living entity on this planet has to try a Talisker.
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@Clarkebar cheers! Interesting you should ask because Talisker helpfully put their distillery coordinates on the bottles.
@PBMichiganWolverine Yes, it would merit a special occasion but I have none in mind.
Wonderful review. The man upstairs has surely smiled upon you. I can't imagine coming across 30 year old anything, let alone buying it. Please excuse my Whisky envy. And could someone please post the Geo coordinates of this desert island?
@1901 nice! Going to open for a special occasion ?
Yesterday, I lucked into getting a bottle of Talisker 30yo. Gratis! Childishly giddy....
@PBMichiganWolverine good choices. The Lagavulin16 would be my desert island dram.
Talisker 18, true love! 😍
@1901 I’d second that...my desert island dram ( either this or Lagavulin )
@SolanaRoots It’s much cheaper in the UK - nearer $90.
Thanks @Whiskey_Hound they’re not a bad choice as a desert island distillery
@1901 Awesome review! If I could only have one distillery for the rest of my life, it may just be Talisker
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@cascode thanks! Ah yes, i missed that: the feisty fieriness could only be her :)
@ghoulbuns1 Nice. Maybe those are the real prices and they’re just overly inflated in SoCal. Need to keep my eye out on business travels then. Cheers
@1901 Great review - love the reference to the film. The chilli and pepper must be from Wendy Hillier :-)
@SolanaRoots "I can get highland park 18 for $50-60 around here like clockwork and the Talisker 18 is never over $100. I’m in Southwest US. I suppose I should be hoarding these things since the price will climb undoubtedly. "
@SolanaRoots my bottle is from 3 yrs ago. But sounds like there’s places that still charge what it was worth some time back
@LeeEvolved @PBMichiganWolverine - $76 for the Talisker 18? Where in the world did you find that deal?
@PBMichiganWolverine @SolanaRoots - funny, I just bought a bottle online a couple of months ago for $76. But, I just checked the same store and it’s now sold out. I suspect a price increase when it returns...
@SolanaRoots it’s been a while since I bought the standard lineup...didn’t realize these went up that much. I thought it was only the unicorns that went up
@PBMichiganWolverine Hell, the Talisker 10 is $60-$70 these days
@SolanaRoots Jesus it’s gone up that much!! I feel dated...I got mine 3 yrs ago for $80. I didn’t realize it climbed that much
@PBMichiganWolverine Is it? In my neck of the woods it goes for $160-$165 while the old school Highland Park 18 can still be found for $125. Tough call but also win-win I guess :)
Fantastic scotch indeed
@Scott_E Thank you! It is a gem. @PBMichiganWolverine it goes for €130 round by me
Best VFM 18 yr old
Nice review. I absolutely love this scotch.