Whisky: Bunnahabhain Abhainn Araig Fèis Ìle 2022

Country/Region: Scotland/Islay

ABV: 50.8%

Cask: Bourbon, Oloroso Hogsheads, PX Octave Casks

Nose: Butterscotch and heather, subtle brine, old-fashioned cream candies, saltwater taffy, cinnamon, anise.

Palate: Medium-bodied, saltwater taffy, spice, fruit, malted candies, nougat, subtle salt and heather, cinnamon and pepper at the end.

Finish: Medium-length with cinnamon, pepper, heather, and a kiss of salt.

Score: 5

Mental Image: Boardwalk Candy Shopping

Narrative & Notes: A boardwalk of treats awaited on the nose; butterscotch dances alongside dried grass, heather, and weathered oak. A subtle maritime salt, a faint mist of the breakers, drifted in with old-fashioned cream candies and a smorgasbord of saltwater taffies: cinnamon, peach, strawberry, anise, and root beer. Medium-bodied, the flavor profile carried forth with the saltwater taffy bouquet: menthol, peach, licorice, cinnamon, and root beer. Dried, salted plums arrived on the mid-palate with malted milk balls, nougat, a kiss of salt, and heather. Cinnamon and pepper lingered at the end with dried grass and salt, all of which continued through a medium-length finish.

This special edition Bunnahanbain, released for Fèis Ìle in 2022, showcased the sweeter side of the distillery with a prominent sherry influence. Bunnahabhain notes on their website that the whisky was inspired “by the waters of Islay,” and the name means “Araig River” in Scots Gaelic. That river also happens to be the distillery’s water source— a key ingredient in this very whisky.

Sherry did not stand alone on this whisky; the use of octave casks, 50-liter casks that are 1/4 to 1/5 the size of the typical barrel or hogshead, allowed for intense wood flavors to appear and certainly contributed some of the vanilla, from which I got those cream candy notes. I found the effect a tad sweet for my taste as candy notes, especially saltwater taffy, seemed to dominate from the nose to the palate without many other distractions.

Overall, a competent creation from the master blenders at Distell that offers a slightly different side of Bunnahabhain. While the official tasting notes from Bunnahabhain are not too far off from my own, I wish I had found the cigar box and balsamic they identify; alas I never did.