Never fret when you are presented with a young, peated Scotch. Surely, if you’re a peat lover, you’re not drinking Ardbeg 10 for the lovely vanilla sweetness. You’re drinking it for smoky napalm. Don’t lie. But if you’re an aged Scotch lover, and seeing 8 or 10 years on the label isn’t exactly bagging your badger, you should know that peated whisky retains its hard hitting peatiness when young. But, Peated whisky tends to lose its power the longer it ages in oak. I can’t explain the chemistry of it all, I just need you to trust me. Talisker 25 is a great opportunity to test this slippery truism.
Introduced as a cask strength expression in 2001, Talisker 25, a favorite among whisky nerds, suffered an ABV reduction to the standard 45.8% AND a monstrous price increase in 2011. Which makes sense since that was around the time when the BS began. We procured samples sizes from Master of Malt to even remotely make this possible, which we recommend to you if you want to try an expensive malt. On to it…
SWC Review
Nose- Quiet smoke barely there. Delicate citrus. Old oak but not overpowering. Fruity variety with apples, lemon, and pear. Coastal feel with iodine. Honey. Orange peel.
Taste- Watery, sadly. Honey with no smoke/peat. Slight pepper. Some sherry.
Finish- Medium. Sweetness underneath with black pepper. Lemon. Smoke shows up, lingers.
Comment- Underwhelming. A quiet malt with little punch. As advertised, the peat was reduced due to the age, but our main complaint was the simple lack of flavor. I wonder what this would be like with more strength. Oh well.
SWC Rating- 81/100
Agree? Disagree? Let us know in the comments section below.
Spokane Whiskey Club 
Leave a Comment