Review by: ZoidbergOnTheRocks
I think I’ve got like 11 more Octomore samples to get through. The things I do for good whisky. Tonight I’ve got samples of 10.1, 10.2, and 10.3. I’ll pour a little 10.4, too, despite my better judgment, just for the sake of completeness.
Since these are all samples the pic is from Bruichladdich’s website.
Tasted on 5/26/2022, neat in a Glencairn, water added later as appropriate.
Distillery: Bruichladdich
Bottler: Distillery Bottling
Region: Scotland, Islay
ABV: 59.8%, cask strength
Age: 5 years old. Distilled in 2013. Bottled in 2019.
Cask type: First Fill American White Oak
Natural color. Non-chill-filtered. One of 42,000 bottles. 107 PPM.
Nose: seawater, subtle earthy peat, very mild wood smoke. Sweet tangerines, lemon rind, peaches. Caramel. Wet rocks at the beach, seashells. Eucalyptus. With Water: more fruit. Some farmy funk. Hmm, less smoke.
Taste: salty, briny. Spicy w/ eucalyptus and pepper. Thick. Sweet fruits. Smoke, peat. A touch of tar or black rubber. A bit hot. With Water: brighter, sweeter fruit. Still spicy. Mouthfeel is excellent, not as hot.
Finish: more smoke here, and peat. Sweet citrus, lemon and peaches. Salty seawater. Some nice spice, pepper, and eucalyptus. Medium-ish length, with smoke, salt, and lemon rind lingering. With Water: smoke is more subdued. Sweeter. More maritime.
Summary: Overall this is surprisingly subtle for Octomore. It starts really maritime then opens up into a lot of sweet fruits the longer it sits. Fruit is first after a while, and water brings out brighter fruit notes and more sweetness. That water also tamps down the already subtle smoke and peat, though. Some nice minearlity to it, too. A somewhat simple dram, but absolutely delicious nonetheless. Really nice mouthfeel.
Would I buy a bottle? no. This is great, but I won’t hunt it. Many better Octomores.
Final Score: 87.
Distillery: Bruichladdich
Bottler: Distillery Bottling
Region: Scotland, Islay
ABV: 56.9%, cask strength
Age: 8 years old. Distilled in 2010. Bottled on 07/17/2019.
Cask type: 1st Fill American Whisky / 1st fill Sauternes
Natural color. Non-chill-filtered. One of 24,000 bottles. 96.9 PPM.
Nose: medicinal w/ iodine and camphor. Mild sooty smoke, peat. Sweet tangerine, peach, lemon, and lots of it. A touch of oaky spice. Incense. Briny seawater. With Water: more savory, but still really sweet. Honey glazed ham. Candied fruits.
Taste: lots of that sweet fruit. Smoke, soot. Seawater, saline. A little spice, growing. A bit hot. Medicinal. Medium mouthfeel. With Water: heat is gone. Very sweet fruits, but more savory now too. Honey. Smoked salmon. Syrupy. Mouthfeel improves. Earthy peat. A slight sourness.
Finish: sweet fruit first, then mild smoke and peat. Medicinal. Mild spice. Mild all around. Medium-ish length. Smoke, spice, sweetness lingering. With Water: again, a bit more savory now. Still very sweet all around. Lots of fruit and honey. Spice is reduced. A bit of sour cream. Finish is all about that sweetness and mild smoke now.
Summary: This is a sweet, savory, and surprisingly subdued Octomore. Sure, there’s peat and smoke in there, but a lot less than one would expect. I feel like water opens it up much more and brings out a savoriness and a funky sour cream that works well here. Decent balance. Not a ton of complexity, but more than the 10.1. If you told me this was PC I’d believe you. NGL, this is too sweet for my taste. A high-quality dram that’s just not my jam.
Would I buy a bottle? no. Honestly, I’d go for any of the 12 series over this.
Final Score: 87.
Apparently they tried to keep production of this one very similar to 10.1, to try to keep the focus on the mainland vs. Islay barley.
Distillery: Bruichladdich
Bottler: Distillery Bottling
Region: Scotland, Islay
ABV: 61.3%, cask strength
Age: 6 years old. Distilled in 2013. Bottled on 07/09/2019.
Cask type: Oak
Natural color. Non-chill-filtered. One of 24,000 bottles. 114 PPM, Islay Barley – Irene’s Field.
Nose: bright, sweet fruits: lemon, tangerine. Clear seawater, warm sand. Eucalyptus. Mild ashy smoke. Earthy peat. Diesel. Chalk. With Water: more medicinal, more smoke, better balance. Warm bread.
Taste: earthy peat and smoke. Nice mouthfeel, oily. More medicinal; iodine, camphor. Machine oil. Lots of sweet fruit; tangerine, peach, lemon. Clean sea spray. Mineral, chalky. With Water: A bit sweeter. A bit of malty bread. A bit of tar.
Finish: nice pop of rich, earthy smoke. Sweet fruit, bright. Salty seawater. Some nice spice here, eucalyptus, camphor. Mildly medicinal. Long on rich smoke, bright fruit, and those medicinal notes. With Water: bigger all around; more smoke, earth, fruit, sea, etc. More medicinal. A touch of tar. Very nice. Remains long on smoke and fruit.
Summary: Beautifully balanced dram, especially w/ water. Water opens it up on every front and doesn’t squash anything. Lots of bright, sweet citrus, clear seawater, a bit mineral, a bit medicinal. The sweetness doesn’t overpower at all. There’s a nice thread of spice that runs throughout which complements the whole really well. Not an off-note to be found. I feel like this would be fun to try alongside the 11.3.
Would I buy a bottle? yes.
Final Score: 92.
I reviewed this in late 2020 and I have to say I consider it to be the worst Octomore. I gave my bottle away, but sadly the split I went in on for a bunch of other Octomores included more of this one too. It’s like a bad penny.
I’ll be straight with you: I was far too charitable on my first review of this. No way I’d give this a 82 now. It’s a mid-70’s, at best. It’s young, over-oaked, too spicy, and has an unnatural, artificial flavor to it that’s odd. I think my previous notes fail to capture that artificial flavor and it’s much more apparent to me today.
Final Score: 75 (adjusted).
Comparison
Order: 10.3 > 10.2 > 10.1 >> 10.4
Let’s set the 10.4 to the side for a moment.
This feels like one of the milder groups of Octomore to me. If you’re coming to Octomore for a big peat bomb, then other release might be more to your liking. Overall these are rather sweet and fruit-forward.
The 10.3 is an excellent Octomore all around. It’s on the brighter, fruitier end, and I put it up there with some of the better recent releases. It’s a nice balance of flavors that works really, really well.
The 10.2 is just too sweet for me honestly. It’s a high quality dram, and if you dig a sweet and mild peat then this one is for you. I can see how it gets rated highly and I won’t fight anyone who says 10.2 wins over the others.
The 10.1 is great as well, but it’s the simplest of the group. Not a good swimmer, sadly. It’s all a close bunch though.
The 10.4 is just not in the same league as the others here. I don’t see why they did this honestly. Perhaps to prove to themselves they shouldn’t do it again? I don’t know.
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 