Review by: The Muskox
Smokehead is bottled by Ian Macleod Distillers, who also happen to own Glengoyne and Tamdhu. Unfortunately, that fact isn’t helpful in determining exactly where this mystery Islay single malt comes from. Malt-review.com claims that the standard 43% Smokehead bottling is an Ardbeg, but the opinion on Whiskybase seems split between Ardbeg and Lagavulin. Even the seasoned u/smoked_herring couldn’t quite pick the distillery, which gives me little hope of figuring it out myself.
Distillery: Unknown.
Bottler: Ian MacLeod.
Region: Islay.
ABV: 58%. Cask strength.
Age: No age statement.
Cask type: Unknown, but seemingly lightly sherried.
Price: $110 CAD locally.
Color: 1.3, Russet/Muscat. Natural Color. Non-chill-filtered.
Nose: Sweet, coastal peat smoke. Woody smoke, iodine, marinated grilled meat, pepper flakes, sea salt, and rice vinegar. Some delicate seafood notes, brown sugar, almonds, oatcakes, milk chocolate, toffee, and flower petals. Asian pear, coconut, underripe coconut, and lime. A hint of chlorine.
Palate: Medium texture. Apple and tart lime up front, with some brown sugar and baking spices. Big peat smoke on the development, with ash and loads of salt. Grilled meat and piles of red and black pepper. Peach tea and grilled shrimp. It gets sweet on the back end, with passionfruit, cherries, milk chocolate, and nutmeg.
Finish: Medium-long, and smoky-sweet. Salt and pepper. Charcoal grill. Apple, cherries, tart lemon, and melon. Some light malted barley and brown sugar. Honey and vanilla. Raspberry leaf tea and ginger.
Conclusion: Wow, I’m really impressed. This whisky is extremely well-balanced. There are some great fruit and spice notes, plenty of peat, and it doesn’t come across as young. It’s very salty and meaty, giving it this really nice savoury kick. It’s easy to sip, but has great depth and complexity. If I see any of the remaining bottles in the province on sale, I think I’ll be making the trip to buy one. I’d recommend you do the same.
I still can’t really tell which distillery this is from. A side-by-side sniff with some Ardbeg 10 has me thinking that this is a Lagavulin, but I could be wrong.
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 