Arran The High Seas / Smugglers Series Vol. II

The second volume of Arran’s Smugglers’ trilogy was dubbed The High Seas. Like its predecessor and it successor, it was put – or is that hidden? – in a nice packaging. Both peated and unpeated Arran were used, of which part matured on rum casks.

Oh, this is a special nose. At first I get some bicycle tire and laundry softener… Not my cup of tea. Luckily that evaporates fairly quickly to be replaced with a mix of fruit like apples and pears. Loads of camphor and a chemical sweetness. I really need to leave it for quite a while before some almonds, oranges and dried apricots can emerge. The rum suddenly kicks in with molasses and sugars. Close your eyes, ban Arran from your mind and you will only smell a young rum. Not really for me.

The body is almost watery. Honeysweet on barley sugars, rum raisins, apricots and baked apples. Very spicy too, on cinnamon, white pepper and a hint of sea salt. I guess that last one had to be present. Oh, lest I forget, it also has a trace of menthol, which seems a bit out of place.

You can call the finish long. It is also mildly drying and spicy until the death. The menthol has the final word.

Very atypical Arran, making it interesting, but it’s not stunner and the least of the series in my humble opinion. Those who did not open theirs, can still get rid of it on auctions for 200 to 300 EUR – which is quite ridiculous.

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