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Colour: Full amber, decent reddish coppery glints.
Nose: To use this worn out word again: A classic nose. A nearly perfect combination of soft peat and clearly defined influence of a good sherry cask. The associations are very pleasureful and fit best into the typical Islay picture: Leather armchairs, sea salt, Latakia pipe tobacco, also cold cigar ash, burnt rubber and clean peat smoke, mellowed by dried fruits (dates and apricots) and brown sugar.
Taste: Very full and warming, boring again to say it’s a “classic” mouthfeel by one of most outstanding “classic malts”. Perfectly balanced again and wonderfully confirmating the expectations of the nose: Tobacco, leather and so on, but now more accents on dried fruits, indian spices, forest honey and black pepper.
Finish: Long and spicy, a heavy emphasis on the peppery notes.
Conc.: This is a truly great dram made by distillery standing for what I do not appreciate very much, I see it as the flagship of Diageo’s movement which makes the whisky world poorer by not a cask (to my knowledge) being distributed by the independents and the expressions being something limited. But hey, if this is a great whisky what’s the matter? I have to acknowledge without envy, this is one of the most beautiful Islay whisky in my book.
Tasting date: November/12th/2009
2009

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Date of tasting: 9/12 2007
Appearance: Burnished copper
Nose: Deep and well balanced aromas. There are some peaty and feinty aromas, not so much smoke but more like earthy, peaty water and scorched plastic. Underneath that lies some fragrant overtones, lavender perhaps, and also a fine iron tone. The diluted dram reveals some hot sand, shoe polish, linseed oil and baby sick.
Body: Medium
Palate: Big, round and full flavored. Almost instantly comes an explosion of peaty smoke and some sort of malty richness. The finish is outstandingly long and powerful. It's sort of vegetative in a way and with a hint of nuttiness in the back of the tongue. I'm guessing this is the 35ppm variation because the smoke was not at all overwhelming, It's a sad thing they have reduced it to ! 43% as well, I would have loved this to be 46 or 48%, it just looses a bit of momentum as it is. Still a great dram.
2009