washeewashee_reviews
Talisker 25 Year
Single Malt — Islands, Scotland
Reviewed
July 3, 2019 (edited April 5, 2020)
Nose - Sweet briny smoke, salt & pepper on smoked kelp, dried persimmons, spicy oak
Taste - Salty drying sweet charcoal smoke, white pepper tingle, salty dried persimmon sweet, light oaky bitterness, hint of lemon zest, lightly medicinal/metallic
Finish - Long lingering smoky salt, light medicinal/metallic sweet, light salty white pepper tingle/heat
Score - 75/100
Final Thoughts - I guess I'm not really a fan of this older expression. It sort of had the "depth" & "age" vibe, but it was all sorts of flavors that were a bit off-putting to me. The smoke was subtle enough, but still quite present even after 25 years in oak. The sweetness was a bit tough to pinpoint, but it reminded me of dried persimmons, which I'm not a huge fan of. There was this medicinal/metallic vibe that I sometimes get from dried fruits that are a bit old. This was interesting as I think I seem to enjoy younger, finished Taliskers better.
Would I drink it if offered? - Yes
Would I specifically order it? - No
Would I buy a bottle? - No
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Yeah I found it odd although I love Talisker the 25 yr was my least favorite. It was really not good full stop. It seems wide variation between the years!
@LeeEvolved @washeewashee yeah, there’s a huge batch variation in these. 2006 was one of the best supposedly
Supposedly this one varies wildly from one batch to another. I’ve had an older version that was fantastic. Apparently, the 2017-2018 bottles aren’t very good. Do you know which vintage this is?
@washeewashee great review! For some reason Talisker bottlings haven’t resonated with me - I get some of that metallic taste and don’t dig it. I don’t know if it has to do with the peat, casks, or something else.