Kilchoman Machir Bay 2012

Kilchoman Machir Bay 2012 is just a beautiful drinking Whisky. As you may already be aware this is a very young whisky being a vatting of 3,4 and 5 year old bourban barrels which are then finished for 8 weeks in oloroso sherry barrels. However as many will attest to age in this case means very little and is a great example of why drinking whisky is about exploring the different flavour profiles and nothing to do with an age statement.

This review is from a bottle that is half finished and opened for 7 months.

Colour: pale lemon and in the glass you can see the natural oils present

Nose: initial impression is this wonderful combination of floral lemon citrus, salt and an almost sweet peat. After a few minutes you start to get the scent of barley and grains mixed with notes of honey and just a subtle note of cadburys fruit and nut bar. Really beautiful and there is just something about those barley scents that remind me a bit of Port Charlotte / Bruichladdich (which for me is a good thing) (23)

Palate: the initial palate is rather subtle, a little touch of vanilla sweetness which very quickly gives way to citrus, mellow peat with a hint of brine. The mouthfeel is fantastic, oily and very buttery. Very smooth but just lacking some richness though that the nose hinted at. (21)

Finish: The finish is where the magic happens in this whisky, this strong wave of citrus peat (almost zesty?) and brine that was so profound on the nose comes through and floods the mouth. Rich oils just seem to coat everything and a peppery spiced peat flavour lingers. (23)

Balance: The balance of this whisky is good, all the flavours work really well and create a brilliant combination that leads you on a few different paths. The only thing lacking was a bit more richness on the initial palate. (22)

Total score of 89

Highly recommend this Whisky for anyone , it is highly drinkable and it's one of those bottles that I just can not seem to keep my hands off. Can not wait to see what lies ahead for this distillery in the future

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