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Bunnahabhain 9 yo 1997/2007 (59%, Signatory, refill sherry butt, cask #5272, 645 bottles) Colour: dark gold. Nose: starts on peat, lots of peat. Reminds me of how sorry was Bunnahabhain's manager, John Mclellan, when he told us that ‘they had to make whisky for the peatophiles'. It's very clean peat mingling with the sherry's butter caramel notes but it's a little too powerful for us to enjoy it without a little water (or it'll burn your nostrils). It's incredible how close to a young sherried Ardbeg this one is. but does that still exist? With water: gets very soapy and ‘lavenderish' but that's because I didn't wait long enough before dipping my nose into the glass again. Then it's the peat and the youth that come through more than the sherry, the latter almost disappears now, although we do have quite some coffee and hints of sawdust. Mouth (neat): wow, what a nice attack, bold and compact but much more ‘bearable' as far as the strength is concerned. Lots of crystal-clean peat (I'd guess they must cut quite late to get all this peat with tall stills) and candy sugar, nougat and flavourful honey as well as orange marmalade. With water (even if it's not obligatory): we have added layers of flavours, like smoked tea and salted liquorice. Finish: long, more organic and farmy now, with funny hints of asparagus and quite some salt. A very good dram despite its young age. 88 points.
Caol Ila 8 yo ‘Unpeated Style' (59.8%, OB, 12990 bottles, 2006) A much awaited official non-peaty Caol Ila, i.e ‘Highlands Caol Ila' as the blenders call it. ‘Unpeated Style' may mean that this one isn't completely unpeated "“ let's see"¦ Colour: straw. Nose: spirity and very ‘alcoholic' at first nosing, not unlike raw medicinal alcohol but the aromas are soon to come through. First both fresh and overripe apples, then a little milk chocolate, toasted bread and cappuccino, then a pleasant oakiness, then something grassy and faintly peaty (just touches, really), then lots of bourbon-style vanilla. It gets finally quite fruitier (gooseberries and green bananas, plantain) and frankly grassy, with whiffs of violets. Interesting to say the least. Mouth: very sweet, powerful but not pungent, starting on all kinds of lemon and orange sweets as well as a little tea and something rather ‘nervous' (icing sugar, fructose). Goes on with notes of kiwi, fresh pineapple, angelica"¦ Extremely ‘natural', with little particular ‘markers' and little wood (but I only had Highlands Caol Ila as a newmake before). Not quite sure one can talk about a particular style here, except that it's very ‘clean', very ‘simply fruity' and very easy to drink with a little water. No peat that I can get on the palate "“ or maybe it's this faint grassiness? Medium long finish on citrus fruits again, pineapples and maybe camomile and hints of marzipan. In short, the nose was a little more interesting than the palate, the whole being a rather simple but certainly not unpleasant malt "“ quite on the contrary. I hope we'll be able to taste a much older ‘Unpeated Style' Caol Ila one day. 83 points.
Mvh
Claus
