A lovely little bag of eight Bowmore


March 11, 2025

A lovely little bag of eight Bowmore

Let's see, how are we going to sort all this out?...

(Bowmore in the 1920s - Bowmore)

Bowmore 12 yo ‘Sherry Oak Cask’ (40%, OB, 2024)

Alas, the 21-year-old version left me a little cold last year (WF 83), in any case, it wasn’t quite where I expected it to be. This is indeed an oloroso finish rather than full maturation, hence that slightly ‘patched-together’ feel. Colour: gold. Nose: well, well, they’ve almost recreated the 1985 style, with lavender-scented eau de toilette and even dried lavender thrown into a roaring fireplace. That said, it then shifts back to a more typical profile, more maritime, with freshly ground coffee straight from the packet. A touch of cured ham. Mouth: once again, we’re hurled twenty-five years back in time, this time with lavender-infused chocolate taking centre stage. It’s really quite amusing, especially as blood oranges start to emerge alongside an increasingly assertive salinity. Finish: curiously long given the strength, yet that perfumed quality keeps coming back. Comments: hmm, once again, that ‘collage’ effect, but of course, it remains interesting and certainly not bad at all. Hey, it’s Bowmore!
SGP:454 - 80 points.

Bowmore 8 yo 2016/2024 (46%, Douglas Laing Provenance, refill barrel, cask #DL19081, 316 bottles)

There are often some lovely ‘au naturel’ things in this small range, which has usually been very well priced. Colour: white wine. Nose: oh, it’s been a while since I found this much olive oil in a whisky. No need to say I love it, so let’s head straight to the palate… Mouth: brine, smoked water, oysters, lemon, and once again olive oil, though in much more reasonable quantities. A touch of paraffin. Finish: long, it’s almost seawater with a bit of boat engine oil and lemon. Impeccable, it’s almost got the taste of Loch Indaal’s water. Comments: no need to say it knocks the official 12 out in the first round.
SGP:466 - 89 points.

Right, we might as well get the next one out of the way straight away...

Bowmore 10 yo ‘Inspired by the Devil’s Casks Series’ (46%, OB, oloroso sherry casks & red wine barriques, travel retail, +/-2017)

A rather amusing example of circular marketing. It’s true that there were some excellent ‘Devil’s Casks’ expressions entirely matured in oloroso, though I don’t believe there was any red wine involved. Colour: full gold. Nose: oh, this is funny, starting with Tesla exhaust fumes (hey, we can joke, right?), then tar, soot, coffee, ham, and dark chocolate. A little blackcurrant, though in very reasonable amounts. Mouth: it’s good, despite some dissonant touches in the background, like charcoal-smoked strawberries, but nothing too disruptive. The rest is rather nice, with oranges, soot, peat smoke, Périgord walnut liqueur (why not), and slightly peppery maple syrup. Finish: fairly long, on ashes, bell pepper, bitter oranges, juniper, leather… Comments: a bit unlikely on paper, but in reality, it’s been done with a certain finesse. We’re now waiting for the next Bowmore ‘Inspired by the 10-year-old that the first Devil’s Casks inspired.’ Always some good fun to be had in travel retail…
SGP:565 - 85 points.

Bowmore 21 yo 2001/2023 ‘Guianova’ (50.8%, The Antelope Macau for Casky 5th Anniversary, refill barrel, cask #80011716, 167 bottles)

Casky’s an awesome whisky bar in Hong Kong. Colour: straw. Nose: right, tropical fruits. Namely, mango and passion fruit. I reckon they must have made a stencilling error at the distillery—this must be a 1971, not a 2001. Anyway, an utterly dazzling nose. With water: fresh seaweed, seawater, langoustines, tangerines. Still sheer class. Mouth (neat): I swear, 1971. Mangoes, tiny pink bananas, seawater, clams, Sichuan pepper, and pink grapefruit. Frankly, we’re a bit stunned. With water: and it swims beautifully, with a saline explosion and a dozen assorted oysters drizzled with lemon and properly petroly Alsatian Riesling. Finish: not eternal but of great beauty, fresh and maritime. Comments: an absolute scandal, this stencilling mistake. Watch out if you’re passing through Hong Kong—this goes down like mother’s milk.
SGP:755 - 92 points.

While we're at it...

Bowmore 26 yo 1997/2024 (52.8%, The Antelope 5th Anniversary, refill hogshead, cask #161221, 198 bottles)

Seems like everyone was celebrating their 5th Anniversary at the same time in the Greater Guangdong–Hong Kong–Macau Bay. Colour: chardonnay. Nose: here we have a peatier Bowmore, less expansive but still crystalline, medicinal, heavily smoky, packed with flint, petrol, engine oil, eucalyptus, limestone, and slate… With water: now fresh fougasse emerges, and we love that. Also a touch of plaster and a hint of casein. Mouth (neat): let’s just say it—this is the style we were expecting. Taut, austere, fairly dry, full of smoke and ashes, shellfish, and all things saline. Grapefruit skin (mind the pesticides). With water: citrus barges in, bringing along its mates, clams and whelks. A rather soft pepperiness. Finish: long, with curious hints of gin and ginger. Lovely aftertaste of lemon and oysters. Comments: less extravagant than its 2001 counterpart, more complex, perhaps more intellectual. Honestly, we love both, but the 2001 had that extra ‘wee wow’ factor.
SGP:555 - 91 points.

Bowmore 27 yo 1997/2024 (53.1%, Tri Carragh, release 06, butt, 144 bottles)

No-frills packaging, which is always nice. Colour: straw/light gold. Nose: more on garden fruits, barley, dandelions, a small handful of sultanas, chalk, cement, candle wax, then grapefruit… This baby is noticeably more discreet than the previous ones, more restrained, perhaps more ‘well-mannered’, if that expression still means anything these days. With water: classic Islay, raw wool, Islay mud, and sliced white bread from the Bowmore SPAR (sadly closed now, I’ve learned! Apparently, it’s a Co-op these days, but I’m clearly behind the times). Mouth (neat): big bang on citrus and peppers, then coffee (must be the butt) and almost-burnt walnuts. A rather unexpected hint of youthful eau-de-vie. Eau-de-vie distilled by the ocean, of course. With water: just perfect, very saline. Loads of brine. Finish: long, peppery, with an ever-present brininess. Comments: in the end, it revealed a bit of a cheeky side over time. Still splendid.
SGP:566 - 90 points.

Let's go 'backwards'...

Bowmore 35 yo 1989/2024 (50.1%, Douglas Laing, Xtra Old Particular, The Queen & King Black Diamond Collection, refill hogshead, cask #188391, 238 bottles)

In a way, this is the top of the top of the top of the top range from Douglas Laing. The 1989 vintage at Bowmore, in our humble experience, can be a little ‘odd’, in that mid-1980s style, or simply sublime and already leaning towards the ‘modern Bowmore’ profile of the early 1990s, which can be superb. Let’s see… Colour: straw (eh!). Nose: hard to pinpoint and describe. Lots of rapeseed oil, a touch of high-end shampoo, cider, Sauvignon Blanc, wool and Woolite, raspberry liquorice (that must exist, right?) … In short, all rather unusual and perhaps a little fragile. With water: all sorts of waxes, papers, and cardboard. Mouth (neat): the raspberry note is even more pronounced. Raspberry yoghurt, raspberry white chocolate, then small shellfish and a curiously graceful and fruity peat. Waxed paper. With water: indeed, a bit fragile, but very beautiful, like an old painting (or an old democracy) that just needs a little restoration. Fruit bread (strawberries, apricots) … Finish: medium length, with a rather unique saline and fermentary fruitiness. Sweet and sour. Comments: it’s not impossible that this very charming malt whisky has started to suffer the inevitable ravages of time, but for now, it retains an utterly unique charm. You know what I mean, right? Like an old black-and-white film…
SGP:563 - 90 points.

One last little one, still backwards, so to speak...

Bowmore 1974/1990 (43%, Moon Import, The Birds II, 600 bottles)

The 1964/1987 The Birds I at 46% was phantasmagorical (WF 94), the 1962/1992 ‘crest’ a little disappointing (WF 89), and the 1957/1990 ‘crest’ perfect (WF 92). But here we are, having never formally tasted this 1974/1990—high time we did. In any case, it’s always an immense joy to add these yet-to-be-tasted old glories to a friendly verticale. It’s all a matter of perspective, you see. Colour: full gold. Nose: there’s something here we don’t find in any Bowmore today—those old massage oils, ointments, camphor, but also paraffin, dried apricots, peppermint, mead, fresh hazelnuts, baklava, resinous wood ashes, mint tea, buttery caramel, old books, inks, vintage magazines… You’re right, it’s going in all sorts of directions, but the charm is immense. Long live chaos in our whiskies! (right?) Mouth: these early 1970s vintages are not always easy to pin down, as their style could vary significantly—some extending the 1960s profile, others not. Here, it’s beautifully saline, perhaps a bit fragile at 43% after all these years, but overall, it’s an unfathomably delicate maritime whisky, almost evoking the deepness of the Mariana Trench (what?). Small citrus fruits, pistachio oil, fruit peels, camphor and eucalyptus, shellfish, almost cosmetic-like smoke… You see, it’s pure lace. Finish: not very long, light, but stunningly elegant. An afternoon on a northern Brittany beach in the Roaring Twenties—or something along those lines. Comments: absolutely sublime, but why, oh why, didn’t they stick to 46% ABV in 1990 at Moon Import? Yes, I know, that’s nitpicking at its finest.
SGP:454 - 91 points.

(Thank you very mucho, Fuji and Thierry!)

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