Bowmore 10 Year Old The Devil's Casks Batch 1

This new Bowmore was hype so much that it sold out in a flash. Of the 6.000 bottles, only 540 were destined for the domestic market in the UK and only 48 came to Belgium. The rest? To the States and the Far East, I fear. You can hardly fin dit and on evilBay you already fork over up to 200 EUR for a bottle that retailed at around 70 EUR. Ridiculous, but it is the law of supply and demand, eh? Anyway, when I first read about it, my initial thought was that the name was not very original (seeing as Arran beat them to it, twice, with their Punch Bowl). But of course that says little over the contents.

Well, it is not a peat/sherry bomb on the nose (which I was expecting as it is young Bowmore at cask strength), but a nicely integrated mix of sweet strawberry jam, cake and struck matches (lucifer in Flemish, which seems appropriate) against peat, diesel oil and tobacco leaves. Leather and tar, too. Quite the depth, actually. After a few moments, raisins and cinnamon are added. It becomes darker all the time, if you get my meaning. Roasted nuts. Salted caramel. This litteraly makes me salivate.

Wonderfully oily and immediately sweet and spicy. Nutmeg and ginger in a glass of plum liqueur. Toffee apples and strong tea. Quince. Orange peel. Punchy! So good, that I do not feel like adding water. Organic chocolate, red wine and a powerful dose of peat. Halfway through I get more silt and oak. Some medicinal touches. Boy, this is devilishly good (ok, that was poor wordplay).

The long finish offers a sturdy smokiness on liquorice.

Wonderfully composed Bowmore. I detect the magic hands (I should probably say nose) of Rachel Barrie here. Pity that it is so hard to get hold of. Thanks, Jeroen, for the sample!

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