Review by: The Muskox

Kilkerran seems to be coming of age very nicely. This single cask, bottled for Pacific Edge, has quite the bizarre maturation history: it was initially matured in a fresh sherry butt, but then finished in a… refill bourbon hogshead. Were they happy with the amount of sherry influence in this cask and decided to move the whisky to something more neutral? Was the angel’s share too high in the sherry butt, so they transferred it to a tighter cask? Who knows.

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Distillery: Glengyle.

Bottler: Official bottling.

Region: Campbeltown.

ABV: 51.5%, cask strength.

Age: 15 years old. Distilled in 05/2004. Bottled in 10/2019.

Cask type: Matured for 10 years in a fresh Oloroso sherry butt, then finished for 5 years in a refill bourbon hogshead.

Color: Dark red-amber. No colour added, un-chillfiltered.

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Nose: Rich. Sort of a two-toned fruit note: there’s loads of sherry richness and flavours like dried cherries and raisin bread, but also a brighter, more tropical set of notes – guava jelly, squishy bananas, Mexican sweet hibiscus tea, and mixed Jolly Ranchers (mostly pink ones) Savoury spice – smoked paprika and oregano. Roasted hazelnuts, pistachios, and cedar planks. Strong malty notes emerged as it rested – barley sugar, buttered French bread, and some soy sauce (a bit briny too).

A couple drops of water added some leather and an interesting edamame note.

Palate: Medium-thick texture, very little heat. Lots of sweet dark cola and preserved cherries on the arrival, along with brown sugar, toffee, and milk chocolate. It develops to soft earthy smoke and a fantastic brown-sugar-roasted butternut squash note. Earthy headed into the finish, with some leather and a bit of crystallized pineapple.

The water brings more pineapple and some peach.

Finish: Medium-length. Dried raspberries, milk chocolate, pineapple fried in brown sugar and rum, and flat cola.

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Possible SMWS bottling name: “Artisanal chocolate board”

Notes: This is extremely good, and very much to my taste. The nose is really phenomenal, fairly Springbanky, quite complex but also balanced and well-integrated. The palate and finish are good as well, but come across just a little bit flat compared to the nose. I can’t say no to cedar, tropical fruit, and raspberry notes combined.

Final Score: 87.

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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.