Dun Bheagan Islay 8 year-old (2002/2010)

The Dun Bheagan Islay 8 year-old (2002/2010) unchill filtered - Cask Numbers 701912 / 701926 (5400 bottles).

Not sure why I picked this up, but I did...and then it spent a year or so in my storage room until I opened it - to replace the bottle of Talisker 10 that I'd finished - and it has been open now for about a year (approximately 1/5 of the bottle remains, which means that I should decant it to a smaller bottle soon).

It is an interesting dram - a "bastard" malt, if you will, as the source distillery is not disclosed, although from what I've been able to find online, it seems that the 2002 bottling was from Lagavulin. Whether the current batch (the 2005/2013) was also sourced from Lagavulin, who knows. It hasn't been a disappointment, although it just doesn't have the same feel as the Lagavulin 16.

Nose: peat...lots of it, and smoke. Then some alcohol (a bit biting), but it mellows a bit and gives way to campfire smoke and smoked bacon.

Taste: thick, oily, mouth-coating, and then bacon, bacon, more bacon, and sourdough soaked in bacon grease.

Finish: quite hot, and a bit harsh...lingering, then more bacon...

Balance: not as balanced as I'd like, as the nose and palate are a bit one dimensional (as much as I like bacon, it can be a bit overpowering). This is a budget Lagavulin, and it shows, but if you want Lagavulin for less than $60 (CAD) then this will do the trick quite nicely.