Talisker

A Talisker Distillery Exclusive (2019) in the glass

My heart always skips a beat as soon as I get a Talisker in the glass that does justice to the rich and justified reputation of the oldest distillery on the Isle of Skye. That happened with the tasting note of today. The whisky was only available for purchase at the distillery, but thanks to a collapsing secondary market I got it for a steal on auction. I have good memories of distillery only bottlings from Talisker, picking up a bottle there myself in 2007. In those days, “no age stated” whisky was a novelty, but for a ‘distillery only’ bottle I could live with it. It was something special for those who made the journey. Prices were nice too. This seemed to have changed now. Making a pilgrimage to a distillery these days, most times results in you losing an arm and a leg to fill your own bottle of Clynelish or Royal Lochnagar. I read an extensive rant somewhere, and this might be limited to Diageo distilleries exclusively. In any case, keep an eye on the secondary market, where prices are allowed to be honest. This purchase stayed well under the original price. I will not keep you any longer, and share my thoughts.

Talisker Distillery Exclusive 2019, bottled at 48 % abv

First things first: When travelling to the Talisker Distillery on Skye, you could find one of these Distillery Exclusive bottlings there, of which 6.000 were made. The whisky matured first in refill oak casks, then in in heavily charred American Oak hogshead, before finally maturing in old European Oak puncheons. The only thing we are missing here, is an age statement. Bottled in 2019 and selected by the staff at the distillery. More power to them! 

Upon Sipping: Quite an elaborate scheme to mature this Talisker, that is bottled at a slightly higher abv than the normally used 45,8 %. All these details are quickly forgotten as soon as you stick your nose in the glass. This is just damn good straight down the middle excellent Talisker. Nice BBQ smells first, smoke, ashes, and a good dose of meatiness from the charred wood. A rich bouquet, wet ropes, hot tarmac, this Talisker keeps on unfolding. The palate offers a nice soft mouthfeel, sweet notes on vanilla and pine resin (actually guessing it tastes like this, I never put pine resin in my mouth…). It just feels sticky and this image sprung to mind. The sweetness turns more to caramel, mocha coffee and maple syrup after a while. The peat in combination with the charred oak makes for perfectly tender London broil. On the finish we get the traditional heat and spiciness that belongs to Talisker like the night belongs to day. With water, more smoke on the nose, but that is about it, so not really necessary.

Word to the Wise: Talisker really shines as soon as some European Oak is involved. It elevates the spicy character of the spirit to new heights. This bottling stands as a nice variation on the standard 10 years old, and easily outshines lesser beings like the NAS Skye and Storm. 

Score: 88 points