Being the only distillery on the Isle of Skye, Talisker opened in 1830, but most of it was rebuilt in 1960 after a fire. It never managed to be a first rate whisky in terms of interest and sales, but the ‘Classic Malts of Scotland‘ series helped it to become one of the most talked about distilleries. This bottling was only available at the distillery, alhough I didn’t buy it there. Some stores have access to it through Friends of Classic Malts Switzerland.
There’s no age statement but it is said to be between 8 and 10 years old. Not sure how limited this is. My bottle is number 2010. In 2007, they released an updated version at 53,9%.
Talisker NAS (59,2%, OB 2003, ‘for sale only at the distillery’)
Nose: starts on earthy smells, a forest after the rain and wet stones. Sharp peat with some lemon and a nice touch of cinnamon. A tad farmy. The usual pepper and sea air is here as well. Very good but on the downside, it’s a little clean and I’m missing a bit of the volcanic warmth of other Taliskers.
Mouth: a powerful attack and oily delivery. Really peaty and peppery. More smoke than on the nose. Quite hot, not much else to taste after that. Gets slightly bittersweet in the aftertaste.
Not your average Talisker. Very good and punchy but still there seems to be an iron harness around this dram, which prevents it from breaking open and showing its true complexity. Otherwise it could easily have been a 90+. Water didn’t help much.
Price: around € 140.
Score: 89/100.