Review by: Raygun

The 2022 release for the Campbeltown Malts Festival. This one was a bit of a puzzler to me. I initially assumed it was peated spirit (which mostly goes to one-offs like this for Glen Scotia), but the label said peated PX cask finish. Which sounds like it was finished in PX casks that were previously used for peated whisky. Apparently someone at Glen Scotia also thought it was confusing, because some have a different label which states it’s peated with a PX finish. Reviewed from a sample. Rested about 10 minutes.

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Distillery: Glen Scotia

Bottler: Glen Scotia

Region/style: Campbeltown single malt Scotch

ABV: 56.5%. Cask strength

Age: 8 years. Bottled in 2022.

Cask type: Bourbon initially and finished in PX.

Color: 1.1 burnished. Natural Color. Non-chill-filtered.

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Nose: Rich malt, date syrup, tamarind paste, marzipan, and a touch of earth. Getting some boggy peat.

Palate:  Definitely tastes peated but not in a smoky way. Malt, molasses, almond cookies. Interesting kind of fruit. Some plum and a little cherry along with the dates. Not too sweet. In fact, gets a little more meaty with water.

Finish:  More earthy, boggy peat. Chocolate-covered cherries and almonds. Dates. Licorice makes a surprise appearance. Plum sauce and a bit of cough syrup.

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Conclusion: Not sure what I expected, but this wasn’t it. Very different beast from, say, the Laphroaig PX Cairdeas. In fact, not many typical PX notes at all; I doubt I’d have guessed PX finish blind. Interesting mix of fruity, earthy, and savory/nutty flavors. I saw tropical notes mentioned in other reviews, but try as I might, I got almost nothing tropical here. Enjoyable nonetheless, even if my experience skewed toward darker and heavier flavors.

Buy a bottle? Not quite my style here. I think Glen Scotia does better with a more restrained approach.

Final Score: 76

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Scoring Legend:

• 95-100: As good as it gets. Jaw-dropping, eye-widening, unforgettable whisky. (Convalmore 36)
• 90-94: Sublime, a personal favorite in its category. (Bruichladdich Black Art 4.1)
• 85-89: Excellent, a standout dram. (Ledaig 13 Amontillado)
• 80-84: Quite good. Quality stuff. (Tomatin 18)
• 75-79: Decent whisky worth tasting. (Glen Scotia 15)
• 70-74: Meh. It’s definitely drinkable, but it can do better. (Aultmore 12)
• 60-69: Not so good. I might not turn down a glass if I needed a drink. (Glenmorangie 10)
• 50-59: Save it for mixing. (Old Pulteney 12)
• 0-49: Blech. (Muirhead’s Silver Seal 16)