Octomore 10.4 Whisky Review!

The fourth & final instalment in my Octomore 10 review mini-series. Click here for Part 1, here for Part 2, and here for Part 3! The sample for this review was provided by Mark Hickey from Spirits Platform, the Australian distributors for Bruichladdich.

This is the youngest Octomore ever bottled, and the first to be fully-matured in 100% virgin oak. Very interesting, and very exciting!

While 10.4 is the third Octomore to be labelled / named as a Virgin Oak expression under the _.4 designation, it's actually the first to be fully-matured in virgin oak casks. As brilliant as the original 7.4 (reviewed here) was, followed by the slightly-tamer & less extreme 8.4 (briefly reviewed here), this new release promises to take the concept to a new & simpler level, with its young age of just three years, spent entirely in heavily-toasted (not charred) virgin French oak. That of course is the minimum age permitted for Scotch whisky, and as a matter of fact this is the first Octomore to be bottled at less than five years of age. For the record, 7.4 was a 7-year old Octomore, and while 25% of that vatting was fully-matured in virgin French oak, the remaining 75% took a leaf out of Amrut's book with sandwich/intermediate maturation rather than a basic finish / double-maturation, spending its first three years in ex-bourbon casks, then two years in virgin French oak casks, before going back to ex-bourbon casks for another two years. 8.4 on the other hand was an 8-year old Octomore where 20% was fully matured in virgin oak casks, but made from American Oak this time, with the remaining 80% being initially matured in ex-bourbon casks and then moved to the European oak casks that had been used for 7.4, making them second-fill virgin oak that had already been used once for Octomore maturation. See, I told you 10.4 was a simpler dram!

This 3-year old whisky promises to be quite divisive and quite different, even for an Octomore, with four main factors, that almost seem to contradict each other, making it difficult to know what to expect. On one hand is the minimum 3-years of maturation, promising a young & spirit-driven whisky, particularly at the high strength of 63.5% ABV. On the flip-side is a relatively low ppm figure for that super-heavily peated malted barley, measured at just 88 ppm - the second-lowest of any Octomore to date, only beaten by the first release Octomore 10-year old - which while still a relatively high number promises a softer smoke and peat level compared to some of the legendary 'peat monsters' such as 6.3 and 8.3. Then out of left-field we have the virgin oak maturation, promising a high level of cask / wood influence, and possibly taming that peat level even further. And then, getting geeky here, we have the fact that those casks were made from French oak, which would normally offer a spicy, tannic and very assertive wood influence. But here they've been heavily toasted, which is going to tame that wood influence, but having a different effect to the higher temperature and more intense charring procedure that is more commonly used when dealing with virgin oak - particularly in the bourbon industry, of course. See, I told you this was going to be an interesting whisky!

One quick note on the strength of this Octomore. You'll probably recognise the figure of 63.5% as the common filling strength for Scottish new make spirit that is being filled into casks, generally reduced (watered down) from the natural strength that resulted straight from the still. That designated filling strength is down to a couple of factors, but the main one is accounting purposes - it's easier to calculate duties & taxes, and easier to swap casks & sell spirit to other companies and other distilleries, when one spirit is the same strength as the other. But like only a few Scottish distilleries Bruichladdich choose not to do this, instead filling their casks at the natural distillation strength which obviously varies based on quite a few factors. This is why many cask strength bottlings of Bruichladdich come in at a higher ABV than similar bottlings from other distilleries, and also means that like the majority of Octomores, 10.4's bottling strength of 63.5% will not be the full / natural cask strength. But something tells me there won't be any lack of punch or lack of flavour here!

So what we have here is a 3-year old Octomore, distilled in 2016 from malted barley sourced from the Scottish mainland and peated to 88 ppm (using mainland peat, remember), fully-matured in heavily-toasted virgin French oak casks, before being bottled at 63.5% with no chill filtration or added colouring. 12,000 bottles were released of this one, and there's still a bit around in Australia - although unfortunately the pricing doesn't deviate from its older stable-mates. But virgin oak is an expensive exercise for a distiller, and crazy bottlings like this aren't easy to get across the line, nor are they seen on the shelves everyday - so it's going to sell regardless, and most Bruichladdich & Octomore geeks won't be able to resist, much like myself. Speaking of which, I can't wait any longer - time to taste what could well be the craziest Octomore bottling to date!

Octomore 10.4, 3-years old, 63.5%. Bruichladdich Distillery, Islay, Scotland.
Distilled in 2016 from Scottish barley peated to 88 ppm, matured full-term in heavily-toasted virgin oak casks made from French oak. Non-chill filtered, natural colour. 12,000 bottles.

Colour: Very dark amber. The power of virgin oak!

Nose: Whoa, this is a big, powerful dram. Hides it's strength and youth quite well on the nose, though. But it's a crazy one! Aged balsamic vinegar (good quality), burnt treacle, currants, and spicy but also syrupy oak. Some dank earthy peat and a little sea salt. Fruity BBQ sauce, dried strawberries dusted with sugar, and dusty old leather.

Texture: Medium-heavy weight, big, syrupy and full-flavoured. A little aggressive heat, but not harsh or unpleasant.

Taste: Syrupy & soft entry, then a massive explosion of sweet & spicy oak, more aged balsamic vinegar, dark & salty soy sauce, a little tar and a fleeting flash of thick smoke. Then a big hit of fresh chilli-heat, like fresh chipotles (smoked red jalapeno), followed by more fruity BBQ sauce - think peach, apricot & strawberry in a thick, sweet & spicy sauce. Still a crazy one, then!

Finish: Long length. The chipotle chilli spice is still there, alongside the dank muddy peat and some salted treacle, plus the balsamic and fruity BBQ sauce. Then there's something reminiscent of a dark rum that I can't quite put my finger on, like a funky & estery tang. That's followed by some flat cola, tobacco & fruit leather (dehydrated fruit roll-ups).

Score: 3.5 out of 5. A tough one to score!

Notes: Well it's certainly not the brutish peat & smoke monster that you'd expect from a 3-year old Octomore. There's a little peat, salt & tar to it, but otherwise it's quite a different beast, and is quite unique. Actually, no, that's putting it too lightly. It's absolutely crazy! A madhouse dram, this 10.4. An extra-crazy version of an already crazy whisky. There's something almost meaty about it too, almost savoury, plus the big oak-forward style that won't be too alien to a drinker of Australian whisky, but will certainly rub some Scotch whisky die-hards the wrong way. There's also a sugary sweetness, which I'm thinking must the spirit fighting back, and the whole shebang could easily pass for a significantly older whisky - aside from that high ABV aggression, anyway.

If you thought 10.2 was pushing the boundaries of what Octomore is, then 10.4 would like to have a word with you. It's taking that boundary-pushing and envelope-stretching to a whole other level. It's fascinating, and almost mind-bending, and it certainly won't be everyone's cup of Octomore. Personally I'm looking at it like I did the 10.2 - don't directly compare 10.4 to other Octomores, just judge it on its own merits, and realise that it doesn't fit the mould. You've got to embrace the crazy ones!

So that's it for the Octomore 10 review mini-series! Thanks again to Mark Hickey from Spirits Platform for the samples of 10.1, 10.3 and 10.4, and to my own bottle of 10.2 for making the sacrifice. And thanks to you all for reading! I hope you've enjoyed the reviews as much as I've enjoyed tasting these delicious whiskies - and I suggest you get around to trying them yourselves!

Cheers!