Blue 42, so either Tobermory or Ledaig. Simple stuff – 10 years in a refill ex-bourbon barrel.
Nose: Toasted bread and buttery biscuit (base) combine with spit-roasted pineapple, lemon balm and olive brine. There’s a slight industrialness here – not quite Swarfega (industrial cleaner), but certainly with a similar engineered oily citrus character. The addition of water adds real broadness to the aroma base – flintiness, samphire, salted caramel and sage seasoned sausage.
Taste: Much more coastal – brine, olives, chalk and limestone. But still with a beating heart of fruitiness – jelly babies and lemon peels alongside heather, hay and a good sprinkling of black pepper. There’s complexity here with a developing maltiness – oats, hay and fresh cereals. Dilution once again proves to be intriguing – barrel char, sage stuffing, bees honey and plastic bubble wrap/cellophane.
Finish: Medium in length and emphasising steeped fruit tea infusions and sooty minerality.
This is either an amped up Tobermory or a dialled back Ledaig – either way, it’s rather good offering depth and nuance both straight and reduced. The cask is in harmony with the spirit here, and there’s not much more I can ask for than that. Recommended.