WF’s Little duos, today AnCnoc OB vs IB


July 4, 2025

WF’s Little duos, today AnCnoc OB vs IB

Knockdhu

(anCnoc)

I must admit I don't see them around much anymore; I remember that 20 years ago AnCnoc or Knockdhu were much more prominent, for example when they started producing peated whisky. Speaking of peated...

AnCnoc ‘Peatheart Batch 3’ (46%, OB, 2023)

This is interesting, they state on the label that there were 34ppm of peat in the malt, then 13.3ppm in the distillate. That said, we had found the first Peatheart rather uninspiring (WF 79), although there had also been a ‘Peatlands’ which, in our view, was somewhat better (WF 80). Colour: white wine. Nose: we’re finding again the style of certain other peated mainland malts, a fairly light profile, more on firwood or beech smoke than on straight peat, which imparts a medicinal side that’s not at all unpleasant—on the contrary—but it leans more towards lapsang souchong than, say Laphroaig. Mouth: soft, still somewhat resinous, with notes of smoked apples, indeed some lapsang souchong, then lemon and green pepper. A nice saline touch but overall, the whole is very mild and certainly not ‘heavily peated’ as proclaimed by the elegant black bottle. Finish: of medium length, on smoked lemons and chewing gums flavoured with chlorophyll and spearmint. Comments: definitely better than batch 1. Batch 2 never made it past the gates of Château Whiskyfun.
SGP:555 - 81 points.

By the way, just a reminder of the story: the new name An Cnoc, or AnCnoc, or anCnoc was supposedly chosen to avoid confusion between Knockdhu and Knockando.

Knockdhu 11 yo 2013/2024 (52.9%, Valinch & Mallet, Young Masters, cask #45, 339 bottles)

We’re so pleased to see an independent Knockdhu again! Colour: gold. Nose: this is a pure, rather fatty malt, thick, with notes of candle wax, oils, overripe apples, hay and beer. There are also hints of walnut oil, possibly pointing to a refill sherry cask. With water: amusing whiffs of tar and old briar pipe. Mouth (neat): ah, very good, still thick, concentrated, liqueur-like in the best sense, and indeed showing a clear sherry influence. Bread dough, wax, pepper, hints of curry. With water: a lovely little beast, genuinely thrilled to be tasting a young Knockdhu again (I know, I do go on). What I especially like is the texture of the whole, which isn’t very common, I grant you. Finish: long, curiously salty and peppery. All in all, you could practically use this to season a mayonnaise. Honestly, I swear, it would work with prawns or langoustines. A touch of rubber in the aftertaste. Comments: we jest, but I’m genuinely a big fan of this young, robust and rather different malt.
SGP:562 - 88 points.

I admit, this mini line-up wasn’t very fair to the little official NAS. We’ll take it easier next time.

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