
Country – Region: Scotland – Isle Of Skye
Distilery: Talisker
Type: Single Malt
Age: 18
Cask: ex-Bourbon & Sherry Casks
ABV: 45.8%
Proof: 91.6
Price: $170
Nose: Spices with smoke and oaky notes are the first to notice. Blackcurrant appears with rum, toffee and seaweed. Neat and complex. The nose is so elegant that you don't want to start sipping.
Palate: Has a round and big, explosive body. Juicy espresso with oak spices and delicious smoke forms a great team.
Finish: Silky and medium long finish with oaky feel with black pepper, heather and tobacco. Like a spell from the rough coastline!
I have tasted many different bottles from Talisker starting from 6 years old to 35. They were all above satisfactory level, and of course some of them were just spectacular. I had no negative experience with any of them. The 10 year old is always stunning, highly acknowledged bottle. Whereas 35 year old is a great malt with a total different character. 25 year old surprises with its fruity qualities.
But the 18 year old is just like a passageway between the smoky character of 10 year old and fruity profile of the elder ones. Talisker 18 excels with its beautiful balance, round texture and rich character.
Not to mention that it took the title Best Whisky in the World at the 2007 World Whiskies Awards, this bottle has to exist in every whisky lover's cabinet.
Just like watching an experienced ballerina, whisky blows your mind as it swirls in the glass. Then you nose and it blows your mind off. Tasting it is a special occasion on its own.
It is just a beautiful art work.