Kyle pulled the trigger on this gamble a few months back and shared samples with everyone to review. I say gamble because this is our first Kilchoman purchase AND it's a single cask bottled exclusively for Craft Cellars. Rather than doing our typical virtual call to taste this one, we all reviewed this separately and then shared our reviews, so the layout will be different. Sean has yet to get his sample being out in Thunder Bay (still Ontario but 16 hour drive) and it may be a while before we get it to him and add his review.
Kilchoman PX. Single cask. Cask strength at 58.6%. 5 years old. Bottled exclusively for Craft Cellars. From the Islay region. $150 CAD.
Kyle's review:
Nose: Peat. Grassy notes. Some fruit. Like an orange peel/raisin. Nice smell.
Palate: Wow. That is very interesting. Sweet flavors and heat. Syruppy molasses feel. Boy that's good. The sweetness is complex. Maple syrup. Jammy syrup. The heat stays for the ride. Warm feeling. Dynamic.
Overall/Rating: I like it from start to finish. Dynamic. Punch in the face with sweet molasses jammy and heat. Smooth warm finish. 89. A touch less heat and it would be 90+.
Trevor's review:
Nose: Peat. Musty. Slight honey. Sea salt.
Palate: Peat. Lemon. Honey. Butterscotch. Goes smooth on the front and spicy bite on the finish.
Rating: 81.
Simon's review:
Nose: Honey smoke. Fresh burnt wood with maple syrup drizzled on top. Silky smoke. It opens up. Stewed fruits and ashes. Peat moss. With water: A lot mossier, like smelling this moss with a bowl of fresh fruits nearby.
Palate: Copy paste pretty much. Silky smoke. Smoked jam. Sweet ashes. With water: More oaky, slightly bitter, little savory. Oaky jam with just a touch of ashes.
Overall/Rating: This leaves my mouth feeling like no other whisky ever has made it feel. It leaves everything (cheeks, tongue, palate, throat) bruised and swollen for about 30 minutes. In a way I like that, in a way I don't. It's got some great flavors. The ashy smoke is definitely front and center from nose to palate. And then you have those deep purple sherry notes similar to Uigeadail. That kind of thick blackberry jam note, hanging in the background. Little bit of honey and maple syrup poking their heads out occasionally. This is fun and tasty and a punch in the palate. It's does change quite a bit with a touch of water but not for the best. 86.
Scott's review:
Nose: Smooth, sweet, floral, hint of pine, herbal, mildew.
Palate: Swallowing fire. Herbal & mossy. Liquorice. Hot pepper spice. Red fruit berry finish.
Rating: 74
Conclusion: Not a bad turn out but I think we'll be careful about Kilchoman single casks going forward. Looks like the main overlap between our reviews is that it's too spicy, and those red fruit & mossy/mildew notes. We'll focus on the standard offering for now as their Sanaig and Machir Bay really blew us away recently. Average rating lands at 82.5 and value rating at 75.8.
Cheers!
The S&P Crew
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