Loch Lomond Inchmurrin 15 Year (2003), SMWS 112.51 “Funky irie feeling”
Whisky: Loch Lomond Inchmurrin 15 Year (2003), SMWS 112.51 “Funky irie feeling”
Country/Region: Scotland/Highland
ABV: 58.8%
Cask: Bourbon Barrel (14Y), Refill Jamaican Rum
Age: 15 Years (Distilled 23 Sept. 2003)
Nose: Tropical fruits and chili pepper, cotton candy, guava candies, chalk, tropical vegetation, creamy candies emerge with more time.
Palate: Medium-bodied, tropical fruits with a kiss of salt, vanilla, pears, hints of chili pepper, coconut, banana.
Finish: Medium-length with tropical fruit, a kiss of salt, and mellow oak.
Score: 6+
Mental Image: Mysterious Roadside Fruit Stand
Narrative & Notes: The aroma presented a buffet spread out before a towering tropical waterfall with the scent of water, dissolved limestone, chalk, dank vegetation, moss, sweet decay, and humid forest. The buffet featured two tables, first a spread of tropical fruits with mango, pineapple, and green papaya coated with sweet chili pepper, and a kiss of salty shoyu. On the other table were bowls of candies, with cotton candy, guava candies, pink starburst, and creamy orange, mint, and passionfruit candies. Medium-bodied, the palate presented a very similar array, though more focused on tinned pineapple, vanilla, pears, guava, and mango. It was an array of shave ice syrups and freshly chopped fruits with hints of chili pepper between coconut and banana. The finish was medium-length with chopped fresh tropical fruits, a kiss of salt, and mellow weathered oak.
The tropical flavors were lovely; this was an absolute tropical bomb of tinned fruits and bottled syrups— not fresh, drippingly ripe fruits, but something more concentrated and sugary. The aroma was wonderfully complex, and though the palate felt simpler, the flavors were still well-integrated. A bit of water dampened most of the spirited prickle that stood out well, giving the flavors a more rounded feel. A bit of peppery chili remained at the end, and more wood notes joined in; I preferred this at cask strength rather than reduced (though I thought it swam nicely with a few ice cubes on a hot day).
Overall, I often enjoy these rum-matured or finished malts, though, since I am not a rum fanatic, I always feel as though there are elements I am missing.
