Excited about Kilchoman in September?

I am from Quebec and I was fortunate enough to have a business trip to Paris where I bought the Autumn release.
It is excellent. Very excellent. Hard to believe it is only 3 yo. Big peat with a nice level of complexity (fruit, smoke and a sweet taste in background). Nice finish also.

I also tasted the Spring release that a friend bring back from its vacation in Scotland.
It is very different from the Autumn release. I even think it is better. More fruit maybe...

I recommend it to any peat lover out there in US ... Don't miss it!

Shame on y'all for not showing more interest here. Tsk tsk.

I am in Calgary and hooked up a bottle of the Spring Release from Willow Park. This is exceptional. Never guess it was a 3 year old.

Try to get your hands on it.

I'm very much looking forward to its release as well. I'm relatively new to serious single malt obsessiveness, but this is clearly a unique opportunity to taste the birth of a great whisky.

Hmmm... as far as I can tell it isn't on the state list for Michigan... wondering if I'll be able to mail order it from a distributor in a different state?

@Kutter , Will it ever be avalaible at SAQ do you think?

i'm on the kilchoman website right now...so do you think the three years spring release is worth 60 pounds including shipping? waiting for advice!

sorry, i meant the summer release...it's already avalaible on the website...

@lucadanna1985 if the summer release is as good as the rest, then yes it's worth every penny. I'll be picking myself up a bottle when I'm next passing close to my whisky shop :)

well I think I will order two bottles of the spring release, one to drink and the other to collect...ok ok I swear, last purchase until christmas!!! (but i've already said the same thing two or three times)

@lucadanna1985

Last purchase till Christmas...Bahahaha!! I don't even bother to delude myself like that. I wish you luck, sir.

Kilchoman at 60 pounds? Little pricey, but it is good. I paid $85 CAD.

Next purchase...my HP Earl Magnus arrives on Tuesday! Woohoo!!!

I picked up the Spring release in the UK a month ago. Fantastic bottle. It reminds me of a tame Very Young Ardbeg. All you would want from a peaty Islay and then some. A wonderful finish -- clearly age has little to do with anything. Find a bottle and savor.

@Carlito Don't even dream about it. No chance the SAQ is selling this. They stick with the big names. You need to go in Europe to find it or try the USA with the Summer 2010 release.

I was't that excited untill reading about It here! So I picked up the Summer release today (just under 50 euros in The Netherlands). Peaty guy! Very nice, but can't compare it to Spring as I've never tasted it. This one is only matured in bourbon, previous ones were in sherry casks as well. Colour of the Summer is a bit lighter.

Great news for Ontarians (and folks that make the trek out here—I'm looking at you @Kutter and @Carlito): Kilchoman 2010 Summer Release will be available at the LCBO as of this weekend, for the low price of $34.95! Normally, I dislike much of what the LCBO does, but this... this is a deal!

I'm definitely planning on picking up a bottle of this soon. What I've heard really has me interested in trying it.

Ended up being in October in Kansas City. Just picked up a bottle yesterday. I'm looking forward to tasting and reviewing it soon.

@dbk Thanks for the tip... I sent a friend that bought six bottles at LCBO. 35$. I am pretty sure that the LCBO made a mistake when pricing this. It should be at least 70$, the price at the distillery.

Anyway, I have tasted it this weekend and it is very different from both the autumn and spring releases that I have tasted. This one is 3yo in bourbon cask, while the two others had an additional 3 months in sherry cask finish. I think that makes a big difference. Especially on a young whisky like this. It is still a nice whisky. Very peated, but with a serious lack of complexity compared to the others. With the summer release, you can tell it is very young. The autumn and spring release, you would think it was 10 yo. The summer release smells like new make. It is peated barley all the way with a hint of citrus on the background. The final is not as long as the others although the peat stays there for a relatively long time.

In conclusion, definitively worthing 35$, but at 70$ I would think twice. The summer release is not at the quality level of the autumn and spring release. I don't know if they did a much larger batch this time in order to be able to export it in North America. I would recommend Kilchoman to continue with the 3 months sherry cask finish for the next releases. I still like very much this distillery and I can't wait to taste their first 10 yo.

@Kutter, I haven't had the good fortune of trying the previous Kilchoman releases, so I really can't comment on those. Admittedly, though, I'm surprised by your thoughts on the Summer 2010 release. I think it's splendid, and not just at the ridiculously low price of $35. I think it puts many of the more "mature" whiskies to shame, frankly. That said, I also look forward to the eventual 10 year-old.

It's simply impossible not to be excited about Kilchoman.

I was fortunate enough to try the Winter Release at the Whisky Show at the back end of October. It was simply stunning and better than the Spring Release in my opinion. However, we tried it at a pre-release strength of 62% whereas it will be released at 46% which will make a difference. Still a great whisky though; very powerful, fresh, long finish and much more mature than you would expect for 3 years. Well worth the money!

@dbk You are right, I think I went too far in my comments. I have tasted it again and it is very good. I still think that it is not as good as the previous release. It is missing some complexity.

Is there a winter release on his way !?!?