To be completely honest I don't know why I'm here. I don't drink whiskey. I don't even drink. But I still watch every video. There's something strangely entertaining to watch someone talk so in detail about something I know nothing about, I suppose. Great stuff ralphy!
I think of the world as a fractal. Ralfy is taking about whisky, but he could be talking about anything. Making a good whisky is only half of the job, enjoying it is the other half. And there's really no difference between enjoying a dram, and say a holiday, a rehearsal with your choir, a visit to a friend, or building a business. It's all just about being there and seeing it for what it really is, an ability with universal applicability. Just my two pennies worth.
@@torbjornkarlsen I do love whisky, but I don't like peated whiskies, like this one, yet I still watched the entire review. Even for a flavor profile I don't appreciate (yet), I still gain insight from Ralfy's whisky dissertations that helps me to improve my own novice knowledge of the whisky craft and a greater appreciation for whiskies that I do love, and even for ones I may perhaps not love now but for which I have not given up hope on, should my palate continue to evolve. I mean, a year ago, I was indifferent to whisky, mostly because I had no appreciation for or much knowledge of the whisk(e)y universe. So, I will not write off the peat, I want to learn all about it, even if I'm not ready for it yet. Thanks, Ralfy! And it is just as you state with your two worthy pennies, it's really about enjoying the finer things in life, whatever they may be.
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I like Senaig, but from the core range, I favour Machir Bay by a tiny margin. My favorite is the 100% Islay, though, it's so flavourful, and has a nice balance between sweet and peat...
Hi Ralfy: Having purchased all 3 of your books and been born in Glasgow Caird Drive then buying my first house at 51 Gardner Street in 1969 for £1950 I suspect my understanding of your comments are greater than the average reader e.g. the Glasgow underground smell..! I’ve been watching your channel for over a year and now pour a dram 50ml taste then add a wee drop water and savour 2/3 times a week. I now drink much less than previous slower and more considered having researched whisky production methods and reviewing distillers prior to purchase only down side my bank balance shrinks each month😂 Keep up the good work👍 Slainte
Excellent information and hats 🎩 off to kilchoman for malting their own barely and bottling. Thanks 🙏 dear Ralfy and kindest regards as always. Ciao 👋 S.
This bottling of Kilchoman is definitely my favorite out of their core range offerings. I have purchased atleast 5 bottles of Sanaig, and really enjoy it.
As a bourbon casks maturation lover Machir Bay was my 1st Kilchoman. Been bit sceptic for Sanaig as a sherry dominant whisky what im not big fan. But more and more ppl everywhere say Sanaig is Gr8 and better than Machir Bay so i decided put my hands on it. And fell 8n love from 1st sip. Sanaig just stole my heart. Such a lovely dram, yummy stuff. 😁🥂🙋🏻♂️
Drinking this only in December & January here in Florida. Not ah tropical drink is it? But so comforting on those rare cold nights. So 'tis sparingly used, but so ... very welcome when it is!
So pleased you liked it ralfy, and that we both agree that this is a banger of a malt. If you’ve ever used birch bark to light a fire, you,ll understand why I get birch bark smokiness on the nose with this dram. I also get the cough medicine note and old English spangles, if you remember them. Such a well balanced dram, and as you say, gives the best of both bourbon and sherry cask worlds. A great malt mark you gave. I agree also that this is a great value buy for the quality you get. A great distillery. I understand that as well as malting their own barley, they’re growing thier own barley more and more. Love kilchoman. Thank you Ralfy for a great review. Regards Shane.
I feel lucky that I have a local bottle shop where the owner really knows his stuff. I went in one day a year or more ago looking for a bottle of the Lagavulin Offerman Edition Guinness Cask finish, which I'd enjoyed previously. They were sold out, but he recommended Kilchoman Sanaig. While a different whisky, I was pleased to find a similar dark chocolate finish on the end after the initial hits of smoke and sweetness. Given the price and integrity of the Kilchoman, it is really hard to beat.
Loving the change of heart in reviewing NAS whiskies, Ralfy.. Kilchoman over the years introduced me to how good NAS whiskies can be. The Sanaig and Machir Bay have been consistently excellent for many years now. Visited last May and the experience was everything I could have hoped.
Machir Bay CS is a great one as well and not too pricey. What I love about Sanaig is that bitter fresh tabacco leaf notes, it is setting me back to the times when I used to smoke roll-ups and bits got into your mouh. This is my go-to drinker now. Excellent dram indeed.
Very nice review of Sanaig, Ralfy! I’ve been enjoying this one since 2017 and - as you noted - its quality remains highly consistent from year to year. For those who enjoy a stronger sherried influence with their Islay peat this is a no-brainer. Excellent value. Cheers.
Hello you Malty Mashtun loving Wormtub Thumper's. Hope they are able to build more floor maltings as I just heard Roy say what you said that Deagio is no longer going to sell peated malt from Port Ellen any longer. Love the Kilchoman 100% Islay barley that they do from dirt to glass in house. Cheers Ralfy
Kilchoman are a cult favourite in our small group of malt mates. At any given time I can three out of the four man crew will have at least a few bottles to hand. Their spirit has a distinct character and signature which strikes a chord with me (unashamedly have a peaty palate paired with sherry) Having said that it doesn't suit all cask finishes in my opinion. The tequila finish for instance didn't do it for me. Regarding the distillery itself, it was one of our picks after visiting all of the (then open) distilleries a number of years back. I believe they were bottling on site back then too. The team were also invested in the distillery and you could tell. They were expanding their operation back then, I believe the project was completed in the last year or two.
Since years by far my favorite distillery, followed by Springbank and Bruichladdich. I love what and how they do their stuff, family runned small honest company. Its a bit pricey, but i love to invest in this distillery!
I'm glad you mentioned the word value a few times here. The Machine Bay gift box was my first decent malt on this journey. Since then I've been holding back on the Sanaig and recently decided to splurge for a Loch Gorm. Obviously, it's going to be very similar in profile, perhaps a bit more sherry but without the good NAS Value. Either way, it's hard to beat the quality and now I'm looking forward to their future with in house malting.
Sanaig and loch Gorm are quite different. The Sanaig is younger and like Ralfy said a mix with bourbon. The Gorm is full sherried. In a tasting i had, i liked the Gorm more cause its heavely sherried. I think you have to find out what suits you the most. Sanaig is great whisky especially for the price. Anyway..... Great review Ralfy. You are the best!
So glad to see you give this a great review. Trying to keep exploring new bottles each time, but you're making me want to go out & grab another Sanaig. I too intended to keep this all to myself but decided it was the right choice to bring it to a beach house for friends who hadn't been together at the same time for over a decade. Of all the whisky brought there, this was the one bottle empty by week's end.
Very much enjoying the recent run of NAS reviews! Side note... Is Ralfy et al wondering what whisky will be reviewed in +29 more reviews? Surely something UNaffordable & UNaccessible. Go on Ralfy, you deserve it! 🙂
I visited Kilchoman in 2015 (their 10th Anniversary year) and fell in love with it. They were still a small farm operation then and were malting/peating their own grain then. I guess they grew big enough to need supplemental barley. I’ve seen photos of the new buildings and can’t wait to go back And see it in person. I’m always chasing their new releases but the distributor in my area seems to not get everything 😢
Glad to know you feel the same way Ralfy. After a year of leaning on reviewers to educate my palate and what details to look for I have started to buy certain bottles on feeling, and this Sanaig is a recent purchase that I just instinctively felt could be a good one. Not sharing this one either (except for the wife!)
I have this bottle and the Laphroaig 10 sherry cask and the Laphroaig is a little more intense and robust but the Sanaig is really nice and rounded for some sherry and peat and its also 50 dollars cheaper making it a really well priced drop. I've pulled out some weird tastes and smells off this one like black olives back of the palate and cherry coconut drops on the nose. Cheers to Kilchoman and enjoy!!
Great..! I’ve reached the point in my whisky journey where to be realistic I have more unopened bottles than I’m ever likely to drink and even with my very low consumption - maybe a dram a week - the health impacts have been drawn into sharp relief. Bad genes I suppose. I’ve recently discovered amateur and shortwave radio. Time for new pursuits. Thanks for all of the awesome education Ralfy.
Kilchoman has fast become one my favourite distilleries. They make some great quality malts. I wasn't aware your scoring system had changed. Could you give a brief explanation, please?
I had two Sanaig between 2020 and 2022...they were markedly different. So different in fact, that I wouldn't necessarily talk about a comparable experience...still have to try the Machir Bay though.
Love everything kilchoman, Machir Bay is smokey salted butter (very similar to longrow NAS), Sanaig is a beautiful whisky (at cask strength it would outshine Ardbeg Uigeadail) and Loch gorm, which for me is much more enjoyable than Lagavulin 16
What a great review! It's so fun to see the adjectives simply pour out of you when you really new enjoying something. Then of course there's the larger imagery - Victorian warehouses and factories in this instance. The little 'homage' to Ricky Fulton and "Last Call" was also a lot of fun... "I won't be sharing THIS" made me laugh out loud. Kilchoman has had my attention for a long time. While I'm more familiar with Machir Bay, Sanaig is also excellent. I like to think that comparing the two releases side by side in any given year is an excellent way to learn about, and let others experience, the effect of casks on the same distillate. I love the mouth feel too, viscous and oily. Delicious stuff. Sanaig has only just reappeared here in New Jersey and I'm expecting Machir Bay soon. Time again to flex the plastic! Thank you as always, Ralfy.
Thanks again for a great review. I was fortunate enough to do a tour here during the festival. Loved it! I found it to be an honest and straight forward distillery with quality products. Just love it. Still diliberating which is my favourite!
got this bottle a few days ago. opened it just now. Love it. Absolutely love it. Ordered 2 more and machir bay cask strength. Kilchoman and port charlotte heavily peated scratch my peaty itch like nothing else at the moment. Only a small sip left in the glass and it's still so intense and wonderful.
Kilchoman is the next Springbank. I love everything they do. Inorefer Machir Bay by a slight margin, but I always seem to have a bottle of Sanaig and Loch Gorm open too. I can't wait until we can get a 2nd fill 18 year old from them. That will be epic
I’ve only recently got into peaty whisky and thought I’d give this a go after watching this review. I’m glad to report this is a wonderful single malt IMHO. I should never doubt Ralfy, spot on with the review of this belter
Dang it….now this wonderful dram is going to be harder to find. 😂. The Sanaig has been a favorite of mine for the last year and is my favorite in the Kilchoman core range (still haven’t been able to find a bottle of 100% Islay). Great review Ralfy!!
Just tried this one last weekend and really enjoyed it. Personally, I found it to be banana nut bread-y. Fruity with walnut bitterness. Slainte to you, sir!
I am an occasional whiskey drinker, not even a collector per se. I usually saved up and buy the odd bottle of whiskey a couple times a year. I enjoy is neat and as you show, with a few drops of water. My previous bottle that I saved up for was Loch Lomond single grain. I know Sanaig is quite a big step up in price but I'm hoping the experience, taste and smell is way better. Unfortunately in South Africa, whiskey ain't cheap and we don't get all the options but for a chap like me who buys the odd bottle, I can't complain too much.
Ohhh... how you loved it! Was laughing my buttocks off here 😂 Exactly how I experience this amazing dram. Thank you so much for this one and enjoy your bottle!
I tried Machir Bay and nah, for the money not interesting at all. Pricey. Sanaig is very close in taste do Ledaig 10. Ordered one bottle but also, it's more expensive here in Slovakia than Ledaig. While Ledaig also grown up with the price from 40 € to about 47, it remains my favorite.
Tried it. Lots of hallmarks of it being a good whisky and can see why the peat heads will like it. To the non peated whisky drinker like myself there's nothing to seperate from Ardbeg or Caol Ila. Realistically it's just another peated whisky from Islay.
I did quite enjoy this but have to admit I have yet to find a Kilchoman that was up to the price charged imo. There’s nothing from their core range I have seen so far as a re-buy. It’s always £15-20 more than I feel it’s worth. For those lamenting the current prices of Lagavulin 16 and Bowmore 15 this is a worthy replacement but when I’m in the mood for a peat meets Sherry dram it’s Ardbeg Uigeadail or Bunna Toiteach a dha that wins for my palate and wallet.
Well, I get the Sanaig and the Machir Bay for about 45 Euros, and I think it’s a reality good price for two very good NAS whiskies. Do you think they should sell for 30 Euros? It’s a small, family-run business, they can’t sell their whiskies for 30 Euros at the supermarket. They aren’t Bowmore, and they bottle at 46%, don’t chill filter and use good, active casks.
@@justinafuchs2619 I stand by that comment. It’s now about EUR 60 for machir bay in Scotland. Ledaig and Ardbeg can put out 10 year old peated spirit for a lower price. The newer distilleries are asking too much for what’s in the bottle. £200 for a 16 year old - obscene. I remember not so long ago everyone was piling on Bunnahabhain for asking £120 for their 18.
@@greigmartin4339 I would never buy the 16 year old for that money, but to be fair, we were talking about the core range. It’s crazy how the whiskies are more expensive in Scotland, but 45 Euros for the Sanaig and Machir Bay are really good prices. The Loch Gorm is about 80-85 Euros, and I gladly pay that money for it, it’s much better than Lagavulin 16 and it’s even better than the Ardbeg Uigeadail. I paid 80 Euros for the 100% Islay and it’s a beautiful whisky, and the price seems very reasonable for a true “From Barley to Bottle” Islay. So no, I wouldn’t say those whiskies are too expensive, at least they aren’t here in Germany.
I would never spend that money for the 16 year old, but to be fair, that’s not what we’re talking about. We’re talking about the prices for the Kilchoman core range, and it’s crazy to hear the prices for it are higher in Scotland than they are over here. And regarding the prices here I have to say 45 Euros for the Sanaig and the Machir Bay is a damn good price because both are damn good entry level whiskies. I can get the Loch Gorm for about 80-85 Euros, and I’m gladly paying it for the quality it offers. It’s much better than the Lagavulin 16 and it’s even better than the Ardbeg Uigeadail, which is still one of my favourites. The 100% Islay is a beautiful Islay whisky, it’s about 80 Euros here and I think that’s a fine price for a truly “From Barley to Bottle” Islay. So I think the core range is reasonably priced, at least here in Germany.
Ralfy, I waited and waited for your thoughts on the colour of the liquid. I have the Sanaig and the colour of this, for a NAS whisky, is remarkable. I really would love if you could share your thoughts on the colour of this Sanaig. Slàinte mhath Ralf!!
Nice review Ralphy. Ive only tried the Machir Bay and Sanaig from Kilchoman and I really enjoyed the Sanaig. Wasnt too keen on the Machir Bay. I really like the sound of the Loch Gorm releases so I'll maybe one day get to try one. Is this the last in the NAS reviews? Im dying to get your take on some certain ones from Glasgow 😉
I really like Sanaig but some batches are way better than others. I recently had a bottle that was not as good as my previous, higher sherry content, bottle. Still pretty good though.
This reminds me of Bowmore (maybe Ralfy already said this?), but better. Bacon (or the pan it was cooked on!) and smoked charcuterie are the main notes I get with the sweetness underneath. Happy I tried this, but I've been spoiled by PC10 which will be a regular purchase for me.
Update: I’d been rationing my PC 10 and using this as my sipper, and after two weeks I’ve got past the shoulder of the bottle and the oxidation has really transformed this dram: the smoke is not as overpowering and I’m tasting the malt. This is a a now a much richer, more complex experience than the first few pours.
tonight, why? because it's cold. i opened the bottle last year and its produced 2019. i really like the chimeney feel , i get pruneau dark cheriies chimeneyyy
Glad to see Kilchoman fairing well, they've been one of my *nudge-nudge/wink-wink^ distilleries for a few years now. Think they may be coming into their own...
If I find it in a bar, I'll definitely try it. But I'm not a peathead (my name is not Frank... eh?!) , so I'll definitely not buy this bottle myself. I never thought, though, that you (Ralfy) would be this excited about a non-age stated whisky. I was a bit surprised to be honest. Cheers Ralfy! Say hi from me to those two lovely kitties that you are blessed to have around (Fluffy and Billy for those unfamiliar with those adorable creatures)
I can't get a bottle of this from my local wine shipper shop, they have to order a minimum of six bottles, and they won't do that. On Ralfy's recomenndation then, I order a bottle via Amazon, delivery tomorrow 10th July 2024 IF I like it, and to be honest I'm not a 'peat head' by any means, (Laphroaig was a bit of a shock, like drinking liquid kippers, however, I persevered and maybe a nip of Laphroaig at breakfast with a kipper may not be a bad thing?) IF I DO like the Kilchoman 'Sanaig' then I will say to my local shop, sod it, order six, I'll buy four and you can put the other two on the shelf. I have 7 other Kilchoman's (various) unopened, I am at the start of my whisky odyssey and although I've come to it late in life I know I am going to enjoy it. I do wish my dad was here to go on this journey with me, I used to bring him a bottle of duty free Glenfiddich single malt when I returned from my travels outside of our duty free zone. He'd have loved all the different whiskies now available and like me, he never drank for effect, more for pleasure. Every time I try a dram in my Glencairn glass I haul out my tasting notes journal and DTG (date, time, group) the tasting experience. One more thing, like I said I'm new to this lark, the phrase 'scotch mist' was known to me, though the meaning was not, and even then I thought it was 'Scots mist'. Imagine my delight when I saw it appear in a glass of Bunnahabhain cask strength, natural colour, non chill filtered whisky after just a few drops of spring water. IF shown to me, I'd have thought the whisky was 'wrong' - now I know different, now I know. My palate and nose is still pretty much hopeless and most of the subtle flavours and aromas are lost to me, no forever I hope!
Great review as always Ralfy! I have 2 reservations about Kilchoman - a) why not give us an age statement whisky? I’d settle for a 10 y.o. The distillery is old enough to do that at this point. They have this blurb on their website: “For Kilchoman, releasing NAS single malt, gives Anthony additional flexibility in deciding which casks to use in each vatting.” I find it, to quote Ralfy, frankly disingenuous. b) Why is Kilchoman so expensive? I have tried a few expressions with friends and to me they don’t stand up to the price asked. Where I am, Kilchoman costs slightly more than Glenallachie 12 and quite more than Glencadam 10. Peat or no peat my money is going to the latter two.
It's a good day when one of your reviews drops on RU-vid. Looking forward to the Xtras on this one too. On your recommendation I've just ordered a bottle before the rush sets in and it sells out. Quick question, what is your opinion on rum finished whiskys? I've just ordered a bottle of Smokehead Rum Rebel and was wondering what to expect? The few reviews I've seen all tend to be very good.
Great review I love this anyway, but happy to hear you are a fan too. I must have missed where you changed your scoring. How does that actually work new vs old?
Sanaig is better and better with every year. Compare 2016 and 2022 its massive improvement. 2022 is lovely complex robust whisky. Machir Bay CS is a belter.
> "unchillfiltered, no color added" I would rather say it is not about respect for us, customers, but about boasting of the distillery craftsmanship: "Look, we did it without those trickeries, it is 100% natural!" Respect comes when they acknowledge: "Yes, we chillfiltered our whisky, and we added caramel for it to look nice, sorry."
I for myself somehow don't get the hang of that Sanaig. I do have a bottle on my shelf since 2 years and give it a chance occasionally but all I find is a whisky that is sweet on the arrival, then the smoke kicks in and get's bitter afterwards. For me theres not much in between somehow. I don't like it at all although I like Ardbegs very much.
I'm at the start of my works journey, but so far, this is my favourite whisky. It's my first peated sherry, and made be realise how much I enjoy that. Malt mates, do you have other peated sherry, suitable for someone in the early steps of this journey?
@@playlists987 There are a few options depending on the availability and budget. If you are ready for heavier peatiness, go for Laphroaig 10 Sherry, Ardbeg Uigeadail, Caol Ila may not be exactly in that category but nice nonetheless and it maybe a bit more expensive. Edradour has good sherried versions but their Ballechin line up I believe are peaty sherried.
