Bowmore 1998 2013 The Whisky Agency ‘Stamps’
Another Bowmore – I’ve had a 17 yo OB duty free special ( malt from 1990 and earlier) that was well perfumed and sweetly peaty, the 1968 Signatory that was all classic and intensely fruity. What about this late 90s Bowmore?
Colour looks promising, not the bronze tea of the Glenallachie 1971 – the profile of which I have fallen in love with, but still closer to bronze than red. It says sherry cask, right, could it be a manzanilla? And I was wondering why are there so few fino/manzanilla matured/finished whiskies – could it be they are around but plainly labelled as sherry? I should have a post on biologically aged sherries (fino,manzanilla) and oxidative-ly aged sherries (PX, olorosso).
Bowmore 1998 / 2013, The Whisky Agency, ‘Stamps’, refill butt, 719 bottles, 52.1 bottles
Nose: Hmm quite a number of similarities between this and the Glenallachie. Bigger peat. Bowmore has about 8 – 10 ppm by the time it gets to the bottle. But still a medium by Islay standards. Ok hemp and tannic with a bite. Some iodine here, along with a resinous sappy woody note like broken branches and unripe plums. Also present is a cognac note, dab of dark fruit aromatics and tobacco. I also find bitter chocolate and cooked berry coulis. With water: Tamed!, still hempy and sappy, but less bite and less punch. Do not add water.
Palette: Medium weight and immediately dry from the get go.Drop of antiseptic and menthol. Those woody sappy resins again, and a distinct salt tang. The coastalness I was looking for earlier comes out now, but its not big. It is nice and warming with dry herbal aromatics and a bitter vegetal development. Ah… bittergourd and menthol cigarettes. Fruity note towards the finish – surprise! With water: Becomes sweeter and sloshingly syrupy. Salted fruit candies, and more herbal. I prefer this without water.
Finish: Medium long, iodine and peatsmoke.
Wow very high quality stuff, well chosen cask! Big dry, tobacco leaf, astringent herbal aromatics, would have been great with just a little more fruit or something to balance the dry-ness. But really this is quite quite excellent as it is.
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