Review by: The Muskox

I realized the other day that if I only review Islays this week, I’ll hit 750 scotch reviews and 200 Islay reviews at the same time. That’ll give me an excuse to pour a very special sample. I’m in for a smoky week!

I reviewed Octomore 12.1 the other day and found it disappointing by Octomore standards. Let’s see if this PX-matured version is an improvement.

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Distillery: Bruichladdich.

Bottler: Official bottling.

Region: Islay.

ABV: 62.1%. Cask strength

Age: 5 years. Distilled in 2015. Bottled in 2021.

Cask type: 75% in first-fill American whiskey casks (bourbon/JD casks), and 25% in Pedro Ximenez sherry butts from Fernando de Castilla.

Price: N/A, sample.

Color: Pale gold. Natural Color. Non-chill-filtered.

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Nose: Slightly hot. Salty and savoury-sweet – steamed crab, dashi, balsamic vinegar, drunken cherries. Wet hay and a hint of lactic funk – cheesecake. Cream cheese on a sesame-seed Montreal-style bagel – somehow that’s a common note in Octomore for me. It’s not even all that smoky, though there’s a little bit of burning rubber and bandages. Buttered grilled corn. Very slightly butyric.

Palate: Silky texture, fairly light. Sweet citrus and bright fruit on the arrival – clover honey, navel orange, summer peaches, and papaya throughout. Apricot-topped cheesecake. Huge buttery malt in the middle, toasting slightly to coconut sugar and burnt grass. Buttered lobster! Subtle nori and iodine. Sauteed mushrooms and something farmy. A hint of herbs – maybe tarragon.

Finish: Sweet. Grilled corn, white miso, and butter. Honey and piles of ripe stonefruit. Lingering fruit jellies and papaya. Slight wintergreen.

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Possible SMWS bottling name: “Desserts wafting through a Sapporo alleyway”

Conclusion: A real step up from the 12.1. It’s sweet, probably more on the sweet side at the expense of the peat than any other Octomore I’ve tried. And Octomore is already quite a sweet peated whisky. It’s not a PX bomb though, and the immense butteriness and interesting savoury seafood notes keep it complex and interesting. The finish – butter, miso, corn, and seafood – is totally Sapporo-style miso ramen. I found myself comparing this whisky not to other Octomores, but with some of the funky malt bombs I’ve tried recently. I think this whisky holds up better to comparison when you try not to judge it as an Octomore, which isn’t all that hard in this case, since this whisky is so different from the other Octomores. I’d say it’s worth a try, though probably not for the $320 or so it goes for around these parts.

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.