Whisky : Bunnahabhain Staoisha 6 Year SMWS 10.201 “Panel-punch of peat-smoke”

Country/Region : Scotland/Islay

ABV : 60.2%

Cask : Ex-Bourbon Hogshead (5Y), 2nd Fill Moscatel (1Y)

Age : 6 Year (Distilled 17 Oct. 2013)

Nose : Maritime, char, and licorice.  Salty sea breezes and tarry sand with a mild herbal smoke in the background.  Notes of falling leaves, bare trees, and chimney smoke all brought autumn to mind.  Sweet hints of licorice and sweet burning pine.

Palate :  Medium bodied with a sharp sweetness and notes of brine, char, and hard candies.  Licorice and dry herbal smoke arrived with a salty shore breeze.  Notes of slightly acrid green burning wood were overcome by a citrus creme brûlée, key limes, white sugar, kelp candies, licorice, and root beer hard candies.  Water brought out more of the sugary hard candies and brine.

Finish :  Lingering notes of char and sugary hard candies.

Score : 5

Mental Image : Candy Shop on a Shipwreck

Notes : This had an absolutely beautiful nose— I love drams that remind me of autumn, especially when the summer heat starts to arrive.  While the nose was quite beautiful, I found the moscatel finish to be overpowering.  It subsumed some of the lovely sea and smoke so that punchy sweet phenolic candies dominated the palate.  This was not bad, but it felt sweet and boring.  Perhaps this was a bit of selection bias on my part— I loved some of the previous staoisha I tried and this just did not live up to their high marks.  If I had never tried those bottles, would I score this a bit higher?  I wonder.

Overall, I loved the nose on this, but the flavor profile fell a bit flat.  Despite being a refill moscatel cask, the sweet wine pushed this dram toward hard candy notes and to a level of sweetness beyond what I enjoy.  I would happily accept a pour of this if offered, but I would not be seeking this out over other staoisha options.