Review by: The Muskox
In classic LCBO fashion, last year’s Diageo special releases are just now showing up on Ontario shelves. Or at least, the shelves of like 5 LCBOs in major cities. Nobody outside Toronto drinks scotch, right?
Here’s one of the particularly interesting ones: everyone loves Talisker, so why not give it a very respectable age statement and bottle it at cask strength? Sounds like a recipe for success to me.
Distillery: Talisker.
Bottler: Official bottling.
Region: Islands (Isle of Skye).
ABV: 57.3%. Cask strength.
Age: 15 years. Bottled in 2019.
Cask type: Freshly-charred ex-bourbon hogsheads
Price: $180 CAD.
Color: Deep gold. Natural Color. Non-chill-filtered.
Nose: Fragrant and pungent. There’s an interesting sweet-sour-savoury mix going on. Fuzzy Peaches (the candy, as well as the fruit), grapefruit, vanilla, honey, dried flowers, and fresh-cut grass. Brine, minerals, wax, black pepper, and fragrant salty driftwood-smoke. and There’s a strong nutty malt and sesame note, which, along with the brine, reminds me of Springbank more than anything. Some graham crackers, chocolate, crusty bread, and breakfast tea with milk. Some raisins and balsamic vinegar emerge with time.
Palate: Oily texture. Tart, salty, and waxy up front, then dried chilis, black coffee, earthy peat smoke, and brine. Long and complex development. Yellow plums, white cherries, pineapple, hard cheese, apples, cinnamon and allspice. Custardy vanilla and pastry notes, as well as dark rye bread, turmeric and cumin. Fragrant smoke, black pepper, burnt sugar, and dark chocolate on the back end.
Finish: Juicy and intense. Nori, wax, and heathery smoke. Lemon, orange, and olive oils, banana, and clove. A little bit of yogurt. Mild oak, black pepper, and black tea.
Conclusion: Very tasty stuff! Classically Talisker, comparable to 57 North, but with more oaky, vanilla’d richness from the casks and some extra complexity from the age. The oily texture and complex and layered development are the highlight for me. It’s well-priced at $180 CAD, too. Worth hunting down for Talisker fans.
Final Score: 87.
Scoring Legend:
- 95-100: As good as it gets. Jaw-dropping, eye-widening, unforgettable whisky.
- 90-94: Sublime, a personal favorite in its category.
- 85-89: Excellent, a standout dram.
- 80-84: Quite good. Quality stuff.
- 75-79: Decent whisky worth tasting.
- 70-74: Meh. It’s definitely drinkable, but it can do better.
- 60-69: Not so good. I might not turn down a glass if I needed a drink.
- 50-59: Save it for mixing.
- 0-49: Blech.
Malt Runners 