Teeling Blackpitts: Cask Strength, Sherry, Marsala, Cognac

Last week I took part in a virtual Teeling tasting titled In the Peat of the Night. We had five peated expressions in the Teeling Blackpitts series.

An interesting insight was the fact that triple distillation doesn’t match well with peated malt, in the sense that the third distillation takes away a lot of the peat character. So Teeling needed to go higher (55 ppm in raw numbers) in order to get anything in the resulting spirit (which comes down to around 15 ppm in the whiskey).

We started with the cornerstone Blackpitts, which was launched in 2020 and which we reviewed back then. This is said to be the fourth or fifth batch since then, although it’s not stated on the bottle.

 

Teeling Blackpitts Peated Single Malt (46%, OB 2023, bourbon + Sauternes casks)

Nose: a fairly mezcal-y smoke, green and herbal with a thin structure. Heady eucalyptus and pine smoke. Then some raw wool, ginger and a subtle salty touch. Maybe very unripe pineapple in the background.

Mouth: still this high-pitched style, with lemon zest and leather, hints of black pepper and salt. It is rather gentle if you compare it to Islay malts. Burnt herbs and heather, maybe coriander on the barbecue. Then some menthol, a floral / youngish spirity note.

Finish: not so long, with green herbal notes, dry ash and some cold mocha in the end.

A light peated malt, so light in fact that it may appeal more to people who normally don’t like peated whiskey. Clearly not a rival for Islay whisky, and that’s probably a smart choice.

 

 

Teeling Blackpitts Sherry Cask (46%, OB 2023)

Nose: meatier and slightly sweeter, with plenty of tobacco notes, roasted hazelnuts and almonds. Light hints of raisins and charcoal. Still this mezal-y, slightly vegetal smoky note, alongside old leather and hints of herbal bitters.

Mouth: leather, citrus, vegetal smoke again. Heather and more floral touches. Grilled fruits, in a sweet and sour way. The sweetness of the sherry comes out in a second wave. Almonds and pipe tobacco.

Finish: greener again, somewhat fighting the sherry now, with black pepper and herbs.

This was a travel retail expression, fully matured in Oloroso sherry casks and distilled in 2016. It feels a little less compact than the regular version, but not entirely balanced or mature yet. The idea itself works though. Score: 82/100

 

 

Teeling Blackpitts Cask Strength ‘Big Smoke’ (56%, OB 2023, second edition)

Nose: a step up in terms of peatiness, a deeper bonfire character. Seaweed and old leather, more cigar leaves and a nice oiliness. Just a little motor oil and iodine. Herbal notes, clove oil and grilled pineapple again.

Mouth: still oily, with bold peat but also a nice smoked pear sweetness, along with graphite, creosote and sharper aniseed. Hints of heather honey and more clove. A light metallic note and hints of raw alcohol too.

Finish: long and sooty, with grassy notes, aniseed and wood char.

The Cask Strength version has a higher ABV, but also contains (some) double distilled spirit. It does seem peatier although it is the same 55 ppm of phenols. Rather excellent on the nose, but slightly less convincing on the palate. Overall better than how I remember the first batch. Score: 84/100

 

 

Teeling Blackpitts Marsala Cask (60,8%, OB 2023, single cask #69760)

Nose: the sourness of the wine stands out big time, maybe even a hint of apple vinegar. Well, interesting. Then musty casks in a warehouse. Some vanilla, sour apple and unripe apricot. Candied ginger and bay leaf.

Mouth: very spicy, with a similar sourness that doesn’t quite compute in my opinion. Still some vinegary notes. Hints of cranberries, bell pepper and a brown sugar edge. Plenty of leather and hints of Rooibos tea.

Finish: long, more heavy tea and sour spice.

Other people seemed to like this one a lot, but it was my least favourite. The Marsala wine adds a mustiness and a vinegary edge that I’m not very fond off. Exclusive to Celtic Whiskey if I’m not mistaken. Score: 78/100

 

We ended the session with a cask sample, still maturing in the warehouse. We tried it blind.

 

Teeling Blackpitts Cognac Cask (60-something%, OB +/- 2024)

Nose: very sweet, with truckloads of ripe apples and whiffs of peach. Synthetic bananas, white grapes and pear schnapps too. Hints of Calvados. The peat is almost absent. Very elegant and rather fruity, later getting lightly floral.

Mouth: again sweet and slightly synthetic in terms of fruitiness. Lots of pear drops and apple, with drops of Calvados. Simple pleasures really. Again no noticeable peat, although some smoke comes out towards the end. Some youngish wood and a wee drop of caramel too.

Finish: long, but rather spicy. More apple sweetness with a few drops of water.

It’s rather unbelievable how this cognac cask seems to have absorbed most of the peat. You wouldn’t believe this is exactly the same 55 ppm spirit. I guessed it was a Calvados cask with all the apple flavours, but it turned out to be cognac. A nice result, keep your eyes peeled as this could be one of the upcoming limited releases. Score: 85/100