Octomore "Ochdamh-Mor" 5 year old Release 2.1 Islay Single Malt Whisky 750ml (Previously $200)

What????? The peatiest Scotch ever made! I had to try it and guess what....it's delicious. I thought the peat was going to completely overpower the little 5 year old whisky here but they actually work really great together. The freshness of the young scotch balances the power of the 140 ppm of peat. The finish was delicious and lasted for minutes. Many many minutes. Don't be scared.

Octomore. Notice the "more" in the name. Because that's what I want. By God, I crave this more than gold. Opening the bottle is like finding a fresh vein for the smack. This is a finely structured Scotch, with plenty of tannins acting as ionic, no, corinthian columns. The nose is that of an autumn breeze, particularly an autumn breeze standing on the walls of Glenlochdain castle after a hearty battle, the smoke of the enemy's funeral pyre wafting into your lungs, a blend of ash and victory.

And the taste, the taste. Searing, salt-encrusted flames on the tip of the tongue, slowly evolving (like the Pleistocene) into a musky, ambergris-laced explosion of peat, as if you had cooked eggs with ambergis but over a wood & moose fire.

Gradually the fire dies down into embers of vanilla, a hint of cardamon, tumeric, like a ransacked moroccan spice market. Gradually only the memory remains. Gradually only the hunger.

The Octomore is a bronco of a dram that will excite all the phenolic philanderers out there-- you know you are in for a wild ride from the very first wafts of smoke! Before even nosing it, I noticed that the legs were almost two-tiered, sort of like a Roman aqueduct. The initial nosing hits like a strong, salty maritime hurricane-force wind, followed by charred wood, peat, and cookie dough. If you manage to push past the smoke, you might find a trace of vanilla even. Initial palate entry offers ash from the embers of last night's campfire or chimney stack smoke notes, immediately followed by a healthy dose of cayenne pepper to flesh out the spicy mouthfeel. Perhaps even a little white pepper? Because of the intense peat and smoke, you do have to look hard for other flavors, but they are there to be found. And the finish is a lot like inertia-- it will stay in motion forever until disturbed by an external force. It isn't for everyone I know, but totally worth it for those who love big, bold peaty flavors. Keep your seat belts on for this ride, folks. It's going to be wild!