Old Pulteney tasting event, Sydney, February 26, 2020, Whisky #2 Nose: Very faintly peaty initially but the smoke grows as the dram opens. A little lemony fruit, vanilla and a fleeting hint of menthol. Palate: The arrival is led by smoke, and it is a heavier in quality here than it is on the nose. Citrus, brine, hot spices and a brown sugar on the development with some oak towards the finish. Over time, and particularly with the addition of water, the peat-reek gains a cardboard note. Finish: Medium. Ashy smoke and brine. The smoke lends weight to this whisky and it is very similar to the current 12 year old but with a layer of smoke added. It’s actually younger (8-10 years) but the smoke gives it presence and heft that makes it seem older than it is. The story from the brand rep was that this was the result of a happy mistake when a run of spirit was accidentally filled into ex-bourbon casks that had previously held Laphroaig. Hmm. It’s more likely they intentionally did an experimental casking using ex-peated barrels rather than run peated wash through the stills. Regardless, the results were impressive enough to convince the distillery to make Huddart a core range product, but it’s not aged in ex-Laphroaig. The casks come from stablemate distillery Knockdhu, which produces a range of peaty whiskies. It’s a good, gently peated dram and it has been well received by the critics. There are several distilleries making these “aged-in-ex-peated-cask” expressions right now (Scapa, Wolfburn etc.) and personally I think Wolfburn Northland is a more subtle realization of this maturation concept. “Above Average” : 82/100 (3.25 stars)