Secret Smokes, Part Two


March 26, 2024

Secret Smokes, Part Two

Because of course we were having more. Secret malts are on the rise while disclosed distilleries are seriously down, apart from Teaninich, Mannochmore, Glenburgie and Miltonduff. Agreed, and a few others, but all of this is becoming a bit tedious, it must be said, and it's not the fault of the independents.

Signed Islay Peat for heating, 2006 (WF/MM Archive)

Islay Single Malt 2013/2022 (53,0%, Or Sileis, bourbon hogshead, cask #WG771, 200 bottles)

Cats always bring us luck! Colour: pale white wine. Nose: tarmac, burnt rubber, tar, seaweed, sea water, liniments, and of course, plenty of smoke. With water: hints of new make spirit, some quite pungent smoke, new rubber boots, and merbromin solution. Mouth (neat): a lot of peat, alongside green apple juice, brine, two olives, and tar. With water: it becomes fruitier, more lemony, while the beautiful peat smoke remains. Finish: long, starting off slightly oily, then becoming increasingly firm. Green apple, lemon, brine, and very smoky fish. Not one thing to discard. Comments: a splendid young Islay. One might think it comes from the south-east, but the one from the very north of the east, in its peated form, often manages to imitate it. So it's hard to say for certain.
SGP:657 - 90 points.

Islay Trilogy III 21 yo 2001/2022 (49.7%, Murray McDavid, Mission Gold, blended malt, PX sherry hogshead finish, 170 bottles)

A vatting of Ardbeg, Bowmore and Laphroaig that reminds me of an earlier Trilogy by MMcD, their thrilling 1967/2006 that was sheltering Bowie, Laddie and Bunny, all 1967s (WF 92 back then). Colour: reddish amber. Nose: It starts with a chocolatey note and the dried fruits of the PX, while the peat ascends as if emulating the albatross from Victor Hugo's verse, slowly and almost clumsily. The balance gradually shifts and then becomes significantly smokier, and we're talking about quite distinct types of smoke: cigar, peat, wood, even heavy fuel oil... It just needs time. It's impossible to say which one of the three distilleries prevails over the other two. Mouth: excellent for a mere PX finish. There's some sweet Chinese sauce for dim sum (sadly, I can't recall the names), followed by bitter oranges with tobacco, chocolate, ginger, and horseradish, and finally a thick, powerful, and salty peat intermingled with candied lemon. Finish: long, robust, and full-bodied, very well-balanced even if the PX is somewhat disconcerting. Comments: It truly needs time to be appreciated. Would this blend have been better without the PX finish? Not so sure (yep, Serge speaking)...
SGP:666 - 89 points.

Blimey, we're too high for the start of a session, once again.

Seaweed & Aeons & Digging & Fire & Sherry & Cask Strength 10 yo 'Batch 3' (56.4%, Master of Malt, Islay Single Malt, 1st fill oloroso sherry octave, 1233 bottles, 2022)

I've heard people say that there's no need to specify sherry + oloroso since oloroso is a sherry. Not at all, junior, oloroso is made in several places, not just in Jerez. Colour: copper gold. Nose: It's funny, the octaves haven't overly influenced the malt but it's still quite dense, with prunes and Corinthian raisins slightly obstructing a more delicate peat than it seems. Water should help. With water: yes, it's better, finer at +/-45% vol. Nice tobacco notes, as often with the oloroso + peat combo. Mouth (neat): very powerful, very full-bodied, very spicy, almost a bit overwhelming. Quite woody, as you'd expect with octaves. With twenty litres of water: the return to civilization, with Indonesian spices, green tea, cumin, and especially a good deal of salinity, seawater, brine... Finish: long, not as peaty as one might think, chocolaty and spicy. Let's say chocolate and olives, a magical combination if you find one that has been well-balanced by a top pastry chef. Comments: very good, quite intriguing, just a bit, let's say tiring. A rascal.
SGP:565 - 84 points.

Secret Islay Distillery 15 yo 2007/2023 (52.3%, Acla Selection, Classic Serie, sherry hogshead, cask #4832)

This one for Switzerland. I'm just thinking, has anyone ever tried to add a wee glass of peated Islay to a Swiss fondue, instead of kirsch? Colour: gold. Nose: a feeling of used matches at first, perhaps just the sherry + peat combo, a little gas and cabbage – but not too much - then orange zests, raisins, leather, cigars, pinewood smoke… With water: ashes, truffles. Gets much drier. No hard-boiled eggs. Mouth (neat): rich, spicy, sweet, a tad over-the-top for me. Big ginger and turmeric. With water: oranges, eggplants and peanut butter. I know. Finish: medium, earthier and more mineral. Limestone, gunflints, matches, old walnuts, peat. Comments: not bad at all, but here's one that I find slightly less convincing, following a magnificent series of new Aclas. It's the barrel's fault, isn't it?
SGP:375 - 80 points.

Port Askaig 17 yo (50.5%, Elixir Distillers, 2023 edition, American oak, 9000 bottles)

I never tried any 17, but 16, 18 and 19 have all been excellent in my book. Colour: pale white wine. Nose: It's delicate, narrow (in the best sense of the word), and ultra-precise, with notes of fresh almonds, peat smoke, lapsang souchong, oysters, and fresh paint. Let's do this quickly… With water: hints of mastic and kelp. Mouth (neat): actually, there's just nothing to critique, it's perfect. Lemons, peat, seaweed, oysters, shellfish, fresh tar, sea water… With water: and it loves water. Finish: long, lively, lemony, smoky, and salty. Impeccable. Comments: sharply defined and, therefore, very crisp. Which makes it dangerous, between us… Here's another bottle that should probably have a warning label about this very topic.
SGP:466 - 89 points.

Since we're on the subject...

Port Askaig 'Cask Strength' (59.4%, Elixir Distillers, small batch #01, 2023)

Are all NAS necessarily underwhiskies? That's up for debate... In any case, if the age isn't known here, we know it's ¼ toasted bourbon (rejuvenated barrels, I suppose) and ¾ American oak (just regular hogsheads, I suppose). Colour: pale white wine. Nose: honestly, it's very fine, with notes of nail polish, lime, ginger tonic, sourdough, wheat beer, plaster, porridge, and some rather elegant and discreet peat With water: very subtle hints of anise and hops. Mouth (neat): sweet yet tart, very citrusy, but with a slightly fatty woodiness. I think it's close to the official CI Cask Strength, but it's been a while since I've tasted the latter. Do they still make it? With water: nice, but there's always a somewhat thick and fatty aspect to the wood. Finish: long, oily in the mouth. In theory, it's the fresh wood that should do that. Comments: very good, I just have a clear preference for the rather marvellous 17-year-old.
SGP:656 - 85 points.

Smoky Scot 8 yo (54.6%, Murray McDavid, single malt, for Germany, oloroso cask finish, 2022)

This one for Germany. So for us as well, as WF HQ is so close to the border. Colour: pale gold. Nose: gentle classic peat, fresh apples, seaweed, coal, then fresh wood, bananas, walnuts and cherry stalk tea. With water: virgin wool and Islay mud after some heavy shower (so, anytime). Mouth (neat): nothing to complain about, at all, even if it's maybe more a whisky for your hipflask (the one with the skull, bones, and Harley-Davidson logo). Touch of varnish, raw peat, bitter zests, green peppercorns, plain black pepper playing with your most delicate lips. With water: very good, very 'that one opposite the Paps'. Finish: pretty long, ultra-classic. One can say that the oloroso behaved this time. Comments: and lemons, green apples, oysters, etc.
SGP:566 - 85 points.

Yeah, if there's one word that characterises Scotch whisky in recent years, it's 'finish'. I find it a bit disheartening because it suggests that the distillates aren't good enough to stand on their own two legs anymore, but that's just me... Second, NAS, and third, absurd prices. Thankfully, not everywhere...
Right, one last one...

Secret Islay 14 yo 2008/2023 (54.4%, Whisky Nerds, refill sherry hogshead, cask #13C, 172 bottles)

The label is utterly smart, but we'll say no more. Colour: gold. Nose: this feeling of smoked apple juice, this charcoal, cigar ashes, clams, fresh almonds, smoked oysters, toothpaste, chlorophyl, seaweed… With water: fresh paint, seawater, carbolineum, samphires, old Islay (correct). Mouth (neat): instant limey pleasures, softer smoke, almonds, wakame, oysters and Tabasco… With water: so epitomically pure CI! Finish: medium, with a welcome kind of softer delicate lightness. See what I mean. Saltier, more coastal aftertaste, with perhaps some small flat oysters. Not much to eat but they are the best, IMHO. Comments: love this very elegant and indeed pretty nerdy one.
SGP:456 - 89 points.

We've still got quite a few 30 yo+ secret Islays (so, Laphies) but we'll have them later. See you. No, wait, you're right, we could have at least one. Eenie…

Secret Islay 31 yo 1990/2022 (51.9%, Archives, Fishes of Samoa, refill hogshead, cask #4404337, 257 bottles)

I get the impression that these esteemed Dutch bottlers have done more for the renown of the Samoa islands, or at least for their multicoloured fish, than the Encyclopædia Britannica. Some say all these are Laphroaigs and we have no personal tasting note to prove, or even suggest, otherwise. The only minor difficulty is that they are generally better than the official releases, a situation not uncommon in Scotland. Diplomatically, this is thus a somewhat tricky situation... Colour: pale gold. Nose: less wood, more character from the distillate, this is really the usual case when comparing IBs to OBs, across all distilleries. Magnificent chalky notes, aged champagnes, mandarins, virgin wool, pistachio and olive oils, and especially an integrally, uh, integrated peat. There's no more peat as just peat. With water: sublime old herbal teas, old fabrics, old wood... A sort of antique shop. Mouth (neat): exquisite, pure, with notes of citrus, chalk, and ripe olives (somewhere between green and black ones). With water: be careful, not too much water! All peated whiskies, especially the old ones, must be diluted carefully as they can suddenly 'snap' or let's say 'detach'. In my opinion... Finish: not too long but absolutely perfect. Lemon, mint, light smoke and lots more. Comments: yes, of course... I often say it but if I were the Laphroaig distillery, I would be extremely proud to have such a bottle bear my name. But indeed, I keep rambling on...
SGP:465 - 91 points.

(Merci, Mike)