Scotland’s Bruichladdich Distillery has unveiled the 14th annual series of Octomore, its super-heavily peated single malt whisky.
Peat. it’s often the dividing factor when it comes to whisky. Some love their drams smooth, fruity and approachable, while others like being slapped in the face with deep, rich smoke. The newest creations of Bruichladdich Distillery, on the island is Islay, are definitely for the latter, whisky lovers looking for the flavours of the earth.
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First released in 2008, Octomore single malts continue to defy whisky wisdom today. Matured for five years, bottled close to cask strength and always super-heavily peated, Octomore’s surprising elegance has led the distillery to define it as “The Impossible Equation”.
The distillery’s experimental trio of limited bottlings continues to push the boundaries of whisky making, exploring barley provenance, cask type and varying peat levels in the pursuit of flavour.
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Octomore 14.1 is the backbone of the series and offers a necessary comparison from which the other expressions alternate. Distilled from 100 per cent Scottish barley and malted to 128.9 PPM, this single malt has spent its maturation in first-fill ex-American whiskey casks, the subtle oak influence of which allows the raw character of the spirit to come through.
Showcasing the intricate balance between smoke, cask and spirit, you’ll discover notes of vanilla and sweet caramel on the nose, with hints of citrus cutting through Octomore’s signature peat smoke.
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Like 14.1, Octomore 14.2 is also distilled from 100 per cent Scottish barley and malted to the same 128.9 PPM. The crucial difference is the cask type, with the second instalment matured in a combination of Oloroso sherry and Amarone red wine casks.
Octomore’s inimitable peat smoke pairs notoriously well with sherry, with the influence of the Oloroso casks adding a robust, savoury flavour to the final spirit. The result is a complex single malt with notes of red currents, rich fruit cake and roasted coffee, wrapped in smouldering peat smoke.
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Completing the collection, Octomore 14.3 demonstrates the extraordinary force of flavour when combining super-heavy peat with the variable harvests gathered from Octomore’s island home. Distilled using only locally grown barley to explore the profound influence of terroir on the final flavour, the 14.3 spirit has matured in a combination of bourbon casks and second-fill wine casks and has been malted to a heavyweight 214.2 PPM.
Transporting drinkers to the Bruichladdich Distillery courtyard, aromas of hot, sweet mash are unmistakable on the nose, with the barley-forward single malt complemented with notes of sweet vanilla, toffee and delicate earthy smoke.
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