‘Tactical’ (Talisker) 20 yo 1980 / 2000 Douglas Laing Old Malt Cask MC 359 bottles 50% vs Hebrides (Talisker) 30 yo 1970 Kingsbury 53.2%

‘Tactical’ (Talisker) 20 yo 1980 / 2000 Douglas Laing Old Malt Cask MC 359 bottles 50%

The sea with all it’s briny salty sharpness is evident here. And warm lemon to match. We are downwind of ripe seaweed, washed up in the sun, on a beach with traces of an oil slick on dirty rocks. Aniseed and thyme pastilles, broken seashells and cigarette stubs. Not a lush whisky painted in broad strokes, but not exactly a cutting and austere style either. What it is is a very drinkable nip of seawater. 88 pts

Hebrides (Talisker) 30 yo 1970 Kingsbury 53.2% 

We step into an entirely different scale of subtle depth. Blink and you might miss it. Vaporous medicinal ointments, dried seawater, oiled planks, sea worn wooden oars, coal lumps and mineral oil. A lot going on here. Black tea brewed with bay leaves and clods of sea mud apparently.An ethereal haze of burnt angelica, juniper, camphor and sandalwood. Absolutely glinting with facets that are honestly not easy to catch, but unquestionably excellent. Soot stained cold grills, tobacco leaf, it keeps giving. Demands quiet contemplation. 92 pts