Origin: Isle of Skye (Scotland)
Type: Single Malt Scotch Whisky
Strength: 48.4%ABV
Ageing cask: Ex-Bourbon hogshead refill
Chillfiltered: No
Added coloring: No
Owner: Douglas Laing & Co.
Average price: € 140.00
Official website: www.douglaslaing.com
Vote: 87/100
We are particularly fond of Talisker. The classic 10yo, which has made so many whisky drinkers fall in love with whisky and which remains an essential dram for anyone embarking on the journey into the great world of this distillate, also represented an important step in our training: it was in fact one of the first bottles bought and finished.
And so, with a hint of nostalgia for those times of adolescent and didactic ethyl enthusiasm, we return to pour it into the glass. But we do not draw from the core range, but rather from Douglas Laing’s extensive proposal, which today, in its Old Particular line, offers us the opportunity to taste a rare independent Talisker.
This is a single cask, non-first-fill hogshead ex-bourbon, bottled in 2021 after 10 years of ageing. Outturn of 383 bottles still somehow available.
Tasting notes
The colour closely resembles that of white wine.
On the nose, the first impact is with a chimney smoke, acrid but not too much, followed shortly afterwards by an overall sensation of undergrowth, that is, a unique and damp ensemble of mushrooms, moss and wood. Here comes the pepper, one of the universally recognised markers of Talisker’s profile, with notes of saltiness and seaweed that in a moment take us to the wild sea of Skye. But a sweet/fruity side soon emerges too, with impressions of freshly baked pastry and yellow apple. A less volcanic nose than we would have expected, but very welcoming.
On the palate, immediately salt and pepper at will: the roar of Talisker one might say, with a charcoal sensation that seems to draw a different aromatic path from the nose. Instead, here too we find a noticeable presence of fruit, with yellow apple and unripe pear, and an altogether not so predictable sweetness, with meringue and lemon cream.
The finish is discreetly long and warm, and takes us back to the beach, with notes of a bonfire that has been extinguished for hours, grilled fruit and pepper.
A kinder Talisker than the ones we were used to, with a cask that worked at the tip of a foil on the distillate, smoothing its edges without altering its peculiarities. Balanced, elegant and ultimately recommendable for those who want to measure themselves against a different yet familiar whisky.