Origin: Islay (Scotland)
Type: Single Malt Scotch Whisky
Strength: 51.6%ABV
Ageing casks: Finishing in ex-Sherry Oloroso 1st fill
Chillfiltered: No
Added colouring: No
Owner: Brave New Spirits
Average price: € 115.00
Official website: www.bravenewspirits.com
Bottler Brave New Spirits’ superheroes are back with a classic Islay peated whisky, matured in hogsheads ex-Sherry first fill, with the character on the label promising a hypothetical opponent to “peat them away”.
And I happily allow to be peated away by one of the 694 bottles produced from this small batch.
Tasting Notes
The nose brings citrus, especially orange slices with planted cloves, along with tamarind, ripe mandarin and a hint of lime. The palate moves into darker tones of cinchona, sweet liquorice, blackberry compote, fondant and toasted cane sugar, where the smoke is that of the barbecue between fish and mammals, with a strong salty and coastal component. Hints of star anise, black cherries and panforte. A very incisive sherry.
On the palate it’s soft and dense, like an aged balsamic vinegar, with chilli, ginger and sweet paprika sizzling on a marmelade base of orange and red fruit, with tamarind returning in syrup form (the kind my mother used to make for me and pass off as Coca Cola). There are distinctly bitter notes of cinchona, aniseed and liquorice, which join the smoke with its fleshy, medicinal and coastal characteristics, becoming rather acrid in length.
The finish is quite long, with notes of barbecue, ashes, citrus, spices, brine and balsamic vinegar.
The sherry casks had a heavy hand, bending the distillate to their will without a second thought, leaving very little of the distillery in the glass. Brutal and a little flat.