From
perhaps the most famous – and certainly most distinctive – of the whisky
regions comes the Islay Single malt of Bowmore.
One of the oldest distilleries in Scotland, they choose to dry their malt with
hot air for 45 hours, and peat for just 15 hours, so it does not have the power
or an Ardbeg or a Lagavulin but it does make for easier drinking and a good one
to start Islay novices on. Bowmore is also mainly aged in ex-Bourbon casks and
these come from just two sources - Heaven Hill and Wild Turkey. So introduction
over and our host Phil Nickson (clearly a Colin Dunn fan!) started us off with
some tricks when tasting:
- Try
to smell the whisky with your mouth open
-
Little
sniff first so you do not burn the senses with ethanol
-
Put
your hand on top and shake (or pour a little into palm), rub till dry then
smell your hands
Our first
whisky was Bowmore 12 Years Old
(40%) paired with Sea Salted Caramel
filled chocolate.
Colour of
golden syrup
Smell of
bonfire smoke, TCP, BBQ char and vanilla really comes through with a bit of
time in the glass
Taste is sweet
at front, more of that vanilla with sharp brine on sides of the tongue
The match?
The dark chocolate coating finishes the whisky really well adding bitter notes
to the vanilla
Then onto Bowmore 15 Years Old (43%) with a Dark Chocolate Truffle
Colour is darker
gold from more sherry influence
Smell is
liquid caramel with some medicinal notes and a lot of (fresh) fruit
Taste is spicy
from extra 3%, deeper sugary richness and has a coffee finish, yum!
The match?
Not as strong I do not think but again a nice bitter/sweet match
The third
was Bowmore 18 Years Old (43%) with
a birds nest type thing of Dark
Chocolate and Nuts
Colour was
darker again from extra barrel time
Smell was
even sweeter, sweet chestnuts roasting and fruit cake – Christmas anyone??
 |
| Bowmore and peated malt |
Taste was
spicier still, with milk chocolate and nuts
The match?
I don’t like nuts so…No Comment!
No onto the
big boys and Bowmore 10 Years Old
Tempest Batch 3 (55.6%)
This whisky
is aged by the sea wall in their warehouse so there is a lot of salt on the
palate and this is really very much bonfire smoke. There is also a bigger punch
at this alcohol level so a bit of water goes a long way to bringing out the
complex web of flavours. At around £45 if you are looking for a special present
for a whisky fan this may hit the spot
And lastly
a whisky that cost £300 a bottle, which only has (now!) 119 bottles available
in the UK
As ever, thanks to Callooh Callay for hosting these awesome tasting opportunities - and for the incredibly tasty mini hot dogs too!
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