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Bowmore 100 Degrees Proof

Average score from 4 reviews and 5 ratings 81

Bowmore 100 Degrees Proof

Product details

  • Brand: Bowmore
  • Bottler: Distillery Bottling
  • ABV: 57.1%

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@talexander
Bowmore 100 Degrees Proof

You might think that Bowmore 100 Degrees Proof is 50% ABV, but then you'd be wrong: this measure is going by the Imperial definition of proof, which is the percentage of alcohol which is necessary to light with gunpowder (which sailors would use to make sure their rum rations weren't being watered down). Pretty sure they weren't drinking Bowmore in the Royal Navy, but hey, who knows. This bottling is non-chill-filitred, no age statement and is only available through travel retail. This comes to me from Pamela Singh (to whom I gifted a bottle for Christmas!) She is drinking some with me, as we speak.

The colour is a light-to-medium gold, slightly cloudy. On the nose, the dominant notes are caramel and vanilla. Light milk chocolate. Peat smoke comes up from the background and prickles the nose. A bit of furniture polish. Quite floral, with a mentholated sweetness - and much more so with a drop of water (which it really doesn't need - hard to believe this is 57.1% ABV). Nice but not distinctive for me.

On the palate the peat is more upfront, and again there is lots of caramel and vanilla. Very briny, even more than most Bowmores I've had. Mouth-watering and a bit oily. An herb garden in your mouth. The oak is very gentle. With water it gets spicy - a real surprise!

The finish is rather minty (almost soapy) with more peat and light butterscotch. It's a perfectly fine Bowmore, especially on the palate, where all the peat and brine really come alive; too bad it's dogged by a toothpaste finish. Let's see how it compares to a much older, and more long-ago-bottled, expression...

NAS? I guess so.

Pam still prefers her Bowmore 12, I am guessing.

I was hoping for more with this one. Soapy? That is not good.

Thanks very much for your review. I want to try this one, but doesn't sound like one to buy. And it is taking me many years to work through the Bowmores I already have.

I tried this a few years ago at the home of a friend. I believe that at the time I had only tried 12, 15,18 and I preferred it to all three.

Of course, that may have been the time I tried Lambertus the first time so who knows how I remember that tasting...

@markjedi1

The Bowmore 100 Degrees was launched for the duty free range, bottled at 57,1% ABV. The strength would have to do with the testing of the alcohol percentage by sailors with gunpowder, back in the old days. I have not got a clue. You should not believe everything you read on the internet… Let us just get a good taste of this!

The nose balances beautifully between sweet and salt. Toasted oak, leather, stockfish, sweet malt, vanilla, ginger. The sweetness translates into a hint of chocolate, toffee and sugared lemon peel.

On the palate, it is quite punchy on citrus fruit and loads of salty oyster sap. Again toasted oak, making it somewhat sweeter, along with the vanilla, ginger and nutmeg. The citrus evolves towards Seville oranges. Nice, big smokiness.

The finish is not only cozy and long, but also spicy. Mostly ginger, now.

I quite like this, even though it is somewhat atypical.

@yori

At 100 degrees proof (UK) you are supposed to be able to wet gunpowder with it and still light it, as a test for undiluted spirit. In my opinion, some of this gunpowder was left with the whisky. I like the nose, with more smoke than the usual Bowmore and some other things going on, but on the pallate I sensed a burned rubber undertone, that took away all the promise in the packaging. This is potent stuff, and while I could drink it, and the burned rubber faded somewhat after the bottle was open for a while, it never really gained my enthusiasm, and I was happy the last of it was gone. I am not sure why I have detected this bad note - many of my friends who tried it didn't, but all said it was strong stuff, and not for beginners... Because I couldn't find anyone to share this impression (which I never had with any other whisky, some tasted the same night) I will not tell you not to buy it - just be aware that it is potent and powerful, and not your standard relaxation dram...

I tried with a little water, than with a lot of water, then I gave the bottle away, then I contacted Bowmore. They wanted a sample, but the bottle was gone and they gave me a tasting pack - 3X200ml - which is great. I think there was something wrong with my bottle, but I will not buy another before I can try a sample somewhere... Plenty of other good whiskys at that price.

I thought it was better than the 10 year old Tempest Batch 3 to be honest and I liked the strange green herby (rubber) note. With a little water it opens up nicely, did you try that already?

@galg

Originally produced for the Travel Retail market (duty free shops) this is a cask strength NCF Bowmore NAS, and comes in a 1 Litre bottle. I’m not a Huge Bowmore fan but I do think they are really trying to make better whiskies in recent 1-2 years, and we definitely can see a change there, which is great news for Islay fans and Bowmore fans in particular. for those wondering about 100 proof being 57% ABV and not 50%, it’s a thing that often confuse people, but UK proof and US proof differ, and 100 proof UK wise means 57%, while in the US 100 Proof is 50%. Now back to reality from whisky geekery world. This sample was sent to me by a good whisky friend (Phil) who was kind enough to send this in addition to a few samples he collected for me in London from Milroy’s. (more about that in the coming weeks).

Bowmore 100 Degrees Proof , 57.10%,£79 Nose: Starting with big briny notes, Very maritime then the expected peat reek, with some tarry ropes. Kerosene With sweet undertones. Golden syrup. Malt. Honey. Yumm. Very nice and i like how the peaty and briny notes work well with the honey and cereal. The nose is fairly gentle considering the 100 proof. Palate: Bigger. Peat smoke with sweet bacon, Vanilla ,honey and big malt. Peppery spicy and Peaty too. A delight. Finish : smoke. Sweet malt. Peat. Honey.

A really good whisky, i was very surprised. The peat reek and smoke with all that seaside really works well above the sweeter layer of golden syrup malt and honey. NAS but doesn’t feel very young, not plasticy and rubbery at all. Way to go Bowmore. You can get that one for cheaper if you pass through the duty free, and if you don’t Master of Malt has some too, i suppose other online merchants will also stock this.

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