Whisky: Talisker 11 Year (2009), Douglas Laing Cask DL 14905 for K&L

Country/Region: Scotland/Islands

ABV: 59.6%

Cask: Refill Hogshead

Age: 11 Year (Distilled Nov. 2009, Bottled Oct. 2021)

Nose: Tar and asphalt combined with brown sugar, molasses, and burning heather— a creosote-flavored cake? Herbal and a touch medicine with plenty of classic pepper and maritime notes; sinus-clearing!

Palate: Medium-bodied and oily, maritime brine and tingling cracked black pepper, burning pitch and tar with coal soot and a freshly paved parking lot, hints of charred pineapple and upside-down cakes lurked further in.

Finish: Medium, though on the shorter end, with a quick release from brine and fruit as the classic pepperiness lingered

Score: 6+ (79)

Mental Image: Ariel’s Shipwrecked Salvaged Pepper Shaker

Narrative & Notes: I will be upfront and admit that I frequently rate Talisker lower than most people I know— certainly much lower than those who consider themselves fans. This has been true across almost every release, from the semi-legendary 1985 vintage from the 2013 Special Release lineup to recent handfills and special release bottles. So, take the score with an additional grain of salt: I do not seem to “get” Talisker.

I want to like Talisker— I loved the acrid and maritime elements of the aroma here, which were just as likely to open the sinuses as burn them as they drifted between pepper, medicinal herbs, sweet creosote, and freshly paved roads. The palate rearranged the dominant notes so that big brine and pepper arrived first, with the more acrid notes of road work or a medieval siege coming later. The flavors were well-structured, but the oily quality was oddly mismatched with the pepperiness, so the whisky always felt a bit off-kilter.  The finish was generally briefer than I wanted, though the peppery quality hung on the back of the palate much longer.

Overall, a bit discordant to me, but sure to please fans of the distillery— especially those starved for a single cask experience, something very rare from Diageo’s Skye outpost.

Image Credit: Whiskybase