Bowmore 17 Year (c. early 2000s)
Whisky: Bowmore 17 Year (c. early 2000s)
Country/Region: Scotland/Islay
ABV: 43%
Cask: Oak
Age: 17 Years
Nose: Coastal and malty with wispy smoke, subtle farm and grilled meat, hints of florals and laundry.
Palate: Medium to light-bodied, brine, tropical fruit, minerals, slightly industrial and dirty, wispy smoke, metallic, malty toward the end.
Finish: Medium-length and mellow with sea shells, driftwood, and hints of tropical citrus.
Score: 7 (82)
Mental Image: Beachside Breakfast Grill
Narrative & Notes: Initially muted and slow to awaken, an early morning campfire on the beach ready to fire sausages, tomatoes, and toast gradually came together with hints of lavender dryer sheets. Soft brine and malty breakfast cereals carried on with wispy smoke, burning wood, and fleeting hints of an earthy farmyard funk. Medium to light-bodied, the flavor profile opened with tide pools, sliced tropical fruits, and coconut bronzer. Briny with minerals and hints of engines idling along the dock. Wispy smoke and rusted tin appeared toward the end with pineapple and grain chaff. The finish was medium-length and mellow with sea shells, driftwood, and hints of tropical citrus.
I expected this to be fairly similar to the 15 Year I reviewed from roughly the same era— these malts were distilled in the 1980s, within the period that Bowmore famously produced some floral and soapy whiskies. While the 15 Year had plenty of beachy florals, this was something closer to the dockside with only glancing hints of florals, that reminded me of lavender-scented laundry sheets. It otherwise dirtier with more engine fumes and industrial cannery qualities— did the florals disappear while this rested in the glass for so many years? Otherwise, everything was as mellow and friendly as you expect from the age and abv.
Overall, tasty fare, I would happily accept another dram and I am always on the look out for older Bowmore— soapy or not.
