A cask strength Talisker is not something you see everyday, even among independent bottlings - which are also quite rare. Rarer again is a cask strength official bottling with an age statement, and one that tells you the specific type of cask/s that it was matured in. Yes, there's the distillery's enjoyable 57 North expression, but that's a non-age statement malt that is not bottled at its full cask strength, and is artificially coloured, and doesn't mention what cask type/s it's matured in. In typical Diageo fashion (looking at you, Lagavulin 12-year old) this 8-year old Talisker doesn't specifically tell us that it is non-chill filtered and/or natural colour, but both looking at it and subsequently tasting it will quickly convince you that it has been spared these travesties. Talisker of course tends to be extensively chill filtered and even more extensively artificially coloured in almost all of its offical bottlings, which are usually bottled at 45.8% - even their 25-year old release, which was last bottled at cask strength back in 2010. Since it's no longer the only operational malt distillery on the Isle of Skye, having been joined by newcomer Torabhaig in late 2017, it's refreshing to see a naturally presented Talisker enjoying some time in the spotlight and joining the ranks of these highly-anticipated annual releases. In fact there's a 15-year old Talisker, again at natural cask strength, coming with the 2019 Special Releases that debuted recently in Europe. And if this 8-year old release is anything to go by, that'll be very sought after.
I first encountered this 8-year old Talisker during my pilgrimage to Scotland in 2018. I had seen quite a bit of fanfare on social media, along with very positive feedback, and in the lead-up to the trip I was beginning to worry that I had already missed out. It was a bit of a surprise release really, since this was the first Talisker to be included in the annual 'Special Releases' program since its inception back in 2001. Even more surprising was the age statement (something not always seen in the Special Releases), and the clearly stated "natural cask strength". Diageo aren't afraid of releasing younger whiskies with single-digit age statements these days, and they should be commended for it. Every now and then we all need reminding that older whisky is not better whisky, and in my opinion in many cases the opposite is more accurate. So when I was lucky enough to find one of the last bottles in stock (and I had to ask) at The Whisky Exchange in London, I didn't hesitate. I was then lucky enough to taste it a few days later at Edinburgh's excellent The Black Cat bar, and immediately knew that I should've brought two bottles, before reality set in and I realised that I still had a lot of distillery visits ahead of me. Thankfully Diageo Australia came through a few months ago and finally put some of this excellent single malt on the physical & digital shelves down under, and at roughly the same price that I had paid in London almost a year prior. For reference, that was around $125 AUD including the VAT but without the Australian customs charges and GST taken into account, while when imported officially it was generally retailing for $129 on the Australian shelves. An absolute bargain for a whisky of this calibre. Once again I didn't hesitate, and finally picked up that second bottle!
This medium-peated (to around 20 ppm) single malt from the Isle of Skye was distilled in 2009, aged for eight years in first-fill deep-charred American oak ex-bourbon casks, and was bottled in 2018 at a cask strength of 59.4%. I must admit that the deep-charred American oak maturation (but not the first-fill bit) did briefly concern me, because the remainder is reminiscent of both the very lacklustre Talisker Game of Thrones / House Greyjoy bottling and the travel retail-exclusive Dark Storm, which didn't blow my socks off. But I shouldn't have worried, because this 8-year old cask strength expression is on an entirely different level. The age of this whisky isn't as random as it may seem, by the way. It's actually a nod to the 8-year old Talisker that was a big part of the distillery's core range, and a precursor to the 10-year old in fact, that was around in the 1980s. But that one wasn't cask strength, and it was most likely chill filtered and artificially coloured. Rumour has it there were only 4,680 bottles released of this cask strength Talisker, which is a very small number in the worldwide scheme of things. A far smaller number made it to Australia of course, and they're all sold out - unless you want to pay secondary market prices, of course. Again, Diageo Australia need to be commended for setting such reasonable pricing on this whisky. Now I'm actually wishing I had bought a third bottle...
2018 Special Releases. Distilled 2009, matured in first-fill deep-charred ex-bourbon barrels, bottled 2018. Non-chill filtered and naturally coloured. 4,680 bottles.
Colour: Lemon-y gold.
Nose: Lovely. Sweet, citrus-y, lightly medicinal plus plenty of Talisker salt & pepper. Loads of charred sweet lemon, warm sand, vanilla custard ice cream and ground black pepper. There's also smoked salty bacon, chopped green chilli, almonds and a little grilled apricot.
Texture: Medium-weight, peppery, sweet and full-flavoured. Very little heat for nearly 60% at 8-years.
Taste: Also lovely. Loads of ground black pepper and a little table salt, more charred lemon & freshly chopped green chilli. A little briny musty-ness, more smoked bacon, plus some sweet oak and a hint of salted vanilla in the background.
Finish: Long length. Brine, that muddy musty-ness again, and more black pepper & lemon zest. A little shellfish-like briny sweetness, and more fresh green chilli. More smoked bacon, some salted almonds, grilled peach & apricot, and more salt & pepper.
Score: 4.5 out of 5. Especially once you factor in pricing.
Notes: Yes, that's a high score, but this whisky deserves it, it's singing. Very, very good stuff. One of the best Taliskers I've ever tasted. Actually, make that the best Talisker that I've ever tasted. I'm sure there'll be many of you out there that have tasted the old cask strength 25-year olds or bottlings from decades ago that will argue with that, but for an obtainable and affordable contemporary Talisker I can't see this being beaten easily. A really lovely peppery, briny & dry dram that shows what this under-utilised distillery is really capable of. That pepper, brine and green chilli note is something that I find in the better Taliskers, and it's here in spades in this 8-year old. Plus there's an almost Campbeltown-like musty & dirty-briny character to this dram that works very well with the pepper, chilli & lemon. If only Talisker had more chances to shine like it does here! Especially at such an affordable price.
The flavour, the character and the value for money that this 8-year old has to offer make it a real contender for BFYB (Bang For Your Buck) whisky of the year - in 2019, that is. I'd have no qualms lining this one up against the legendary Springbank 12-year old, Lavagulin 12-year old and Laphroaig 10 Cask Strength - which is really saying something. And none of those were $129 AUD. Bravo Diageo, we need plenty more like this - please & thank you!
Cheers!
No comments:
Post a Comment
Share your thoughts & opinion on my opinion!