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| Hi, this is one of our (almost) daily tastings. Santé! |
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April 2, 2026 |
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It seemed only right that I should try to make amends for our rather pitiful April Fool’s joke yesterday, about which I am absolutely certain no one was taken in… were they? If that did happen to be the case, I offer my sincerest apologies to WM Cadenhead, to Diageo and Lagavulin, to any auction houses that may have been contacted in the meantime, as well as to the former workers of Malt Mill, assuming there are still a few of them alive and kicking! |
French prog-rock band Magma, early 1970s
(Hey Dave!) |
In any case, the Talisker that follows is very much real, rest assured. In fact, it is being released onto the market today. |
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Talisker 47 yo ‘Magma’ (48.8%, OB, 622 bottles, 2026) 
This brand new old Talisker was matured in refill American oak hogsheads, then finished for four months in new American oak casks toasted by heated volcanic rocks from the Isle of Skye, instead of open flames. While we know perfectly well that Talisker ages with grace, while also being capable of sheer sublimity at 5 years of age just as much as at… 47 years (indeed, rather like certain Jamaican rums), we’re hoping this ‘Magma’ is cut from the same cloth as the incredible music of the French band Magma, kings of Zeuhl music. Check them out! Colour: deep gold. Nose: it is impressively fresh. We do not, naturally, find any volcanic or basaltic notes as such, as one might for example in the Rangens de Thann from Zind-Humbrecht, but this gentle brine interwoven with guavas and pink grapefruits is quite extraordinary. It then becomes more medicinal, I was almost going to say more ‘Talisker’, with embrocations and massage balm, a little in a Thai style. Then come the winkles and small oysters, reminding us that the distillery sits by the sea, not forgetting a few little touches of pink pepper. Mouth: once again, it is astonishingly fresh, with a dial that has been set exactly where it ought to be, between seawater and pepper on one side, and exotic fruits, especially citrus, on the other. A sort of camphory mint comes along to complete the whole structure which, incidentally, also becomes increasingly saline and smoky as the minutes go by. Careful though, the drinkability index is very high. Finish: long and more resinous, still camphory, with bitter almond and a few drops of olive oil, beyond a smoke that remains, all in all, rather gentle. The soft pepper comes back with a vengeance in the aftertaste and reminds absent-minded (or over-talkative) drinkers that what they have in their glass is indeed Talisker. Comments: entirely on the level of the Glacial Edge or the Prima & Ultima from three years ago, which is to say superlative. I think we may open the betting, how long can these casks keep going? Sixty years? Seventy-five years? You say even more?
SGP:653 - 93 points. |
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