Origin: Isle of Islay (Scotland)
Type: Single Malt Scotch Whisky
Strength: 56.4%ABV
Ageing casks: Finishing in ex-Tequila
Chillfiltered: No
Added colouring: No
Owner: Diageo
Average price: € 180.00
Official website: www.malts.com
Vote: 83/100
After Roseisle’s debut, here is a staple of Special Releases that have recently always offered a Lagavulin of the same age, but with different maturations.
For this The Ink of Legends, the choice was made to venture a finishing in ex-Tequila casks (Don Julio Anejo, to be precise), which made many shake in their boots.
The choice of illustration is dedicated to the ancient art of tattooing, defined as ‘clouds slowly dispersing in whispers of stories’, where the distillery’s bicentenary spirit of intensity and pride resonates in Mesoamerican symbols like a map of historical victories imprinted on a living canvas. Or something like that.
Tasting notes
On the nose, the first evident element is a certain acidic and vegetal scent, of almost rotting fermented plant, with the smoke following suit with a rather consistent arboreal component, grafted onto fatter, fleshier notes. The coastal profile is very present, between oysters, brine and wet wood, with grilled lemon, pineapple, toasted caramel and a drop of propolis.
On the palate, herbs dominate: rosemary, thyme and marjoram scattered copiously over grilled meat and fish with plenty of lemon juice. Pepper, ginger and dill take care of the spicy section, with cloves planted in orange slices, mellow smoke, pineapple, peanuts and a curious hint of artichoke. Widespread saltiness and vegetal notes especially along the length.
Quite long finish with saline tips, nuts, pepper, vegetal notes, pineapple, citric notes and dull embers.
I wasn’t very convinced by this finish, which brings more confusion than richness, creating ungainly notes that seem to disturb rather than enhance the distillate, especially on drinking. An unsuccessful experiment for me, perhaps curious to try but not worth a whole bottle.