Octomore 06.3 (Islay Barley)

Islay barley, from Bruichladdich’s own Lorgba field at the Octomore farm, was used to create this Octomore 06.3. It was distilled in 2009 and bottled earlier this year.

A massive 258 ppm of phenols, that’s almost 100 ppm more than the fourth or fifth edition of this dram. The world’s most heavily peated whisky at the moment.

Octomore 06.3 ‘Islay Barley’ (64%, OB 2014, 258 ppm, 15.000 btl.)

Nose: surprisingly farmy, something that I didn’t get from previous releases. Wet animal fur, hay and wet leaves. I also get thyme, grapes and burnt heather. Hints of yeast. Lots of dark bread crust as well as some vanilla pastry. Hazelnuts. Quite nice, more flavoursome than you would expect from a peat monster.

Mouth: very peaty and ashy of course and overall maybe a bit alcoholic. Burning wood. Hints of warm vanilla in the background. Herbal liqueurs. Sharp grapefruity notes too. Salty liquorice and salted nuts. Not very complex but quite enjoyable nonetheless.

Finish: very long, tarry, peppery and quite a sweet hint of chocolate and vanilla.

There’s a good deal of flavour in this whisky, despite its high strength and monstrous peat level. Around € 180.

Score: 87/100