Whisky: Arran 9 Year (2014), Douglas Laing for K&L

Country/Region: Scotland/Islay

ABV: 57.5%

Cask: 2nd Fill Bourbon Barrel

Age: 9 (Distilled 2014, Bottled 2023)

Nose: Industrial and slightly acrid smoke, rubber, metallic, pineapple, tobacco, more melon candies behind a blanket of grill smoke.

Palate: Medium-bodied, sweet fruity arrival, more industrial and acrid smoke further in, metallic, rubber, medicinal herbs toward the end with tobacco and youthful pepper.

Finish: Medium to long and peppery with a tease of citrus.

Score: 6 (78)

Mental Image: Pineapple Cannery Picnic Ground

Narrative & Notes: Slightly industrial-tinged acrid smoke drifted over the harbor with burning rubber and hints of turpentine. The old pineapple cannery was back in action with metallic notions of cooked pineapple, mentholated tobacco, and melon candies— though getting to those notes required wading through a cloud of grill smoke.  Medium-bodied with an initial gust of sweet melon and pineapple before dirtier smoke swept in with an acrid industrial quality.  Picnicking next to the pineapple cannery with metallic and citrusy notes against machinery and a kiss of rubber.  More medicinal herbs and hints of tobacco lay in wait at the end with a peppery send off.  The finish was medium to long and peppery with a tease of citrus.

Did someone abscond to Arran with a cask of Caol Ila?  If they did, I imagine it tasting something like this with plenty of citrusy, briny, and industrial qualities. I am not a massive fan of the peated malt produced at Lochranza until recently when Lagg opened. There have been exceptions, and this was fairly close to the mark. I have always felt that Arran existed in a weird place as the delicate malt gets lost in the peat smoke, and lacks some of the heavier character that might balance the experience. Lagg is quite a different story and I look forward to seeing how that malt continues to progress.

Overall, this was a bargain when it came out and retailed for $65, but it is not the sort of thing I would hunt down otherwise.

Image Credit: ArranWhisky.com