
August 6, 2021

A trio of Octomore

(or the funniest dungeons of malt whisky)

You know Octomore, don't you. The peatiest Bruichladdich, the cursor-pushing, record-breaking, Nigel-Tufnell- approved malt whisky that fuels race cars and makes widows. We'll have three…

Octomore 10 yo 2009/2020 (54.3%, OB, 12000 bottles)

208 ppm 'in the barley', but what's important is what goes through. We've often noticed that Port Charlotte could be 'smokier' than Octomore and by the way, we tend to prefer Port Charlotte (ex-bourbon or ex-refill). But let's keep an open mind… Colour: light gold. Nose: eating curry in a working kiln, really, plus bacon sandwiches. Goes on with a lot of tar and liquorice, creosote, new wellies, new diving gear, sriracha sauce, Tabasco, Worcester sauce, some kind of harissa… And then many fresh strawberries. Not the first time we're noticing that heavy peat and strawberries can sing together. With water: gums and burnt rubbers, creams and strawberry-flavoured jelly babies. Mouth (neat): smoked strawberries, peppered apples, pink grapefruits and muscat, plus a lot of tar and liquorice indeed. The sweetness is a little troubling but this is quite spectacular. Were some wine casks involved? Châteauneuf? I know I should check the website but I wouldn't like to miss the Procol Harum Special documentary on ABC. With water: sweet peat. Very sweet peat. Williams pear liqueur. Finish: rather long, very sweet. Many jams and liqueurs that would have just digested those 208 ppm peat. Comments: the smoke was eaten alive!
SGP:754 - 86 points.

Octomore 8 yo 2011/2020 (59.9%, The Cask Whisperer, first fill bourbon barrel, cask #4555, 246 bottles)

This baby from Big Jim McEwan's Private Stock - 2nd Release. No wine in sight this time, this is what we'd call a clear lap in motor racing. Beep, beep, beep… Go! Colour: white wine. Nose: much narrower, and yet more elegant, tight, mineral, lemony, creosote-y, chalky… I find this awesome. A lot of ashes, ashtray, also green olives, capers, samphires… That's all stuff that's ticking the proper boxes. Gazpacho. With water: perfect tight acidic smoke, soot, whiffs of new plywood (at Ikea), which I enjoy, more olives, new electronics, new MacBook (you know, 'It didn't work because something went wrong', etcetera…) Mouth (neat): simple, on ashes, lemons and green peppers. The thing is, this works a treat. More smoky gazpacho and some green walnuts. With water: excellent. Creamy mouthfeel, citrus, barley, smoke, ashes, bananas, limoncello… Finish: long, clean, fat, a tad more resinous. Comments: the best, al natural, without any butchered wines. Great young smoky tipple, well selected Jim, and a rather paroxysmic, yet civilised smoke this time. Nah, it's just super-good.
SGP:468 - 90 points.

Wine, he said. Just like Jim McEwan, at WF we're afraid of nothing…

Octomore 11 yo 2008/2020 (58.8%, The Cask Whisperer, Whisky Shop Neumarkt, Rivesaltes cask, 322 bottles)

A Swiss bottling, hurray! With Covid, I've been missing all Swiss events, sob… Rivesaltes is a Vin Doux Naturel, which is not really naturel since it's fortified, just like PX. Ah, the labyrinthic French regulations that often make no sense at all! By the way, Rivesaltes is located in the far-east of the Pyrénées, while the wines are mainly made out of grenache (white, grey, black) and various muscats. There are both whites and reds, all fortified like sherry and Port. Good, let's try this little Octomore… Oh by the way, it's to be noticed that Mark R. is now using a lot of Vin Doux Naturel at Waterford too. Colour: gold. Nose: I believe the Rivesaltes brings a very brioche-y side, you would say tarte tatin with pears instead of apples, with some very sweet pipe tobacco, fruit molasses, fortified jams, mirabelle liqueur… All that. As a consequence, the cursor being all on the jammy side, there isn't a ton of peat. With water: maraschino, almonds, battelman cake. Mouth (neat): very, very rich. The sultan's tiple. Big muscat and concentrated fruit syrups, boy is this rich indeed. Roses, Turkish delights, cherries… What's rather fascinating here is that there are no off-notes whatsoever. An exception in my book. With water: same as on the nose, more almondy notes, cherries, and this time a few aromatic flowers and herbs. Around sweeter aniseed… Finish: long, sweet, on smoked candied cherries (should anyone ever decide to make that). Only the aftertaste runs you off the road, with a leafy sourness. Bah… Comments: I'll be honest, I was sure this would be an utter disaster. Once again, I was wrong.
SGP:755 - 88 points.

Check the index of all Octomore we've tasted so far