Ledaig 8 Year Old 2005 The Whisky Mercenary

The Whisky Mercenary - aka Jürgen Vromans – just launched its first peated non-Islay whisky. It is a Ledaig from 2005. I quite like Ledaig 2005. Remember the bottlings for Anverness, Smoking Buffalo and Carn Mor? All of them quite nice Ledaig.

Ha! The nose is bull’s eye! Lots of assertive peat with a hint of a fish barbecue. That is immediately followed by a lot of fruit. Think white fruit (apples & pears), but also citrus. Mostly, though, something that reminds me of melon. Wet rocks left, walnuts right. Drop of olive oil. Soft pepper. A great start.

Nice and creamy mouthfeel. Now it is the fruit that stands out, while the peat is pressed into the shadows somewhat. But this is certainly very nice. Spicy with ginger, pepper and even some liquorice. Midpalate, a salty edge appears.

The finish is wonderfully long and smoky. The peat takes charge again.

Great and assertive Ledaig, that fulfilled my expectations fully. Around 70 EUR.

Find where to buy Ledaig whisky