Cool list! Kilkerran Heavily Peated (Batch 6) absolutely blows my mind--I love everything about it. Sadly, I have about 1-2 drams left in the bottle, so I try to find a quiety spot where I can weep without drawing too much attention... When I can swing another purchase, I'll pull that trigger, although I'm tempted to try Batch 7. From the Western Highlands, the Ardnamurchan Cask Strength (02.22) also draws rave reviews from my nose and palate. One non-Islay expression I hope to try is the Benromach Contrasts: Peat Smoke Sherry Cask; unfortunately, I've had no luck seeing it anywhere around me. As for the Ledaig 10, I always detect a cheese-funk I find terribly alluring. It's been probably going on two years since my last bottle, and always loved it, but if I had any "complaint" it was the finish, which I found slightly shorter than I anticipated, but perhaps I need to buy another bottle and re-visit that criticism.
Smashing it mate. I've found myself reaching for peat a bit less than usual recently. Glasgow 1770 Peated is probably my favourite non-Islay peat though
Hi Ben, excellent video, Benromach, AnConc (peatheart) and Ballechin ( Edradour) are all worthy non Islay peated drams, nothing more to say about Ledaig 10, it’s all been said. For a cheap as chips peated dram the Glen Moray classic peated isn’t a bad buy. Slàinte Ben.
One of the bars that I visit regularly has Ledaig 10. It is a great one. If I want something peaty when I'm there, I'll order either this or Ardbeg 10. In my collection at home, I have Ledaig 18, which is also excellent. Islay is represented in my collection too - I recently picked up a bottle of Port Charlotte 10, and I am enjoying it. Here is a list of some others peated single malts that I have in my collection. These aren't even from Scotland. The peated style is getting to be popular elsewhere too. Connemara peated (Ireland) - This is 40% ABV and rather light, so it wouldn't be a likely choice for hard core whisky drinkers, but it has a nice, soft flavor and might be a good beginner's peated whisky. It's also inexpensive and easy to find. When I'm tasting through a few strongly flavored whiskies or other potent spirits, I like to start by cleansing my palate with something light and easy, and this one does the job just fine. Westland peated (Washington) - This is a young whisky that spends some time in new American oak, so it gets a bit of that rich woody flavor on top of some powerful peat. 46% ABV, non chill filtered, no added color. High Coast Dàlvve (Sweden) - This is a light, refreshing young whisky that has a level of peat that is fairly low but still quite evident. Someone who is peat curious but doesn't want to go directly for the strong stuff might like this. 46% ABV, non chill filtered, no added color. Sweden might be an interesting place to watch for whisky in the future. It has the right sort of climate for long, slow aging. I wouldn't be surprised if some really good stuff appears there after the distilleries have had some time for their stocks to age. On a related note, peat isn't the only fuel that can add a powerful flavor to a single malt. Arizona is not a place where one would expect to find peat, but there is a lot of mesquite wood. Del Bac Dorado is a single malt from Tucson, Arizona, that is made from malted barley that has been placed over a mesquite fire. If you like bold flavors in your single malt but want to try something different, give this a try if you can find it.
Thanks for shining a light on peated whiskies., Ben. Needless to say I love peated whisky (next to non peated, just to set it straight). As you said Islay peat differs from non Islay peat. And there are some great non Islay peat whiskies. Slàinte mhath
Old Ballantruan 10 became my go to when I had it. It is 50% abv seemed thin first pour. Then it improved and the smoke/peat came through as a dark deep note reminiscent of cleaning out a coal fire ash tray. That brooding darkness is very different to the Islay medicineality (new word)and addictive.
Nice to see GlenTurret right out of the gate. Thats relatively affordable by me so it's on my current short list to pick up. I think Ledaig gets enough Whiskytube love , well deserved, as I'll buy anything from Tobermory. But i would mention Torfa from Glenglassough as a distinct highland peat. In my collection, Ancnoc and Ardmore (and India's Paul John) present some real islay alternatives, albeit on the cleaner side. I often pour a dram of peat and non-peat and enjoy them off each other. Some sherried whiskies are so intensely spicy that it can get mistaken for a peatlike experience. Either way, it's all good. The times i don't want peat at all are very rare. Ledaig 10 and Laph10 CS are always easy to reach from my bar
I'm not sure about current availability, but I have been quite partial to some of the peated offerings from anCnoc (Rutter and Tushkar in particular - I think current ones include Peatheart and Rùdhan), Benriach (Solstice and Authenticus - I think things have got simpler/dumbed down since they dropped the Latin names!)) and (Tomintoul's) Old Ballantruan, to name just a few. I'm a little surprised there was no mention of Orkney...
I have no AnCnoc… and I really should. I have 1 Benriach (Smokey 10, which I’ve covered before). I’ve not had much time with the Old Ballantruan to make an educated assessment… and I only have 1 Highland Park and it’s bloody awful! 😂😂 Nah I need to get more AnCnoc and Highland park. I’ve had a few lovely drams from both, yet every time I go to buy one (especially highland park) I end up with a dud. Will look into the above! Cheers!! 🥃🥃
