Kilchoman Loch Gorm (Batch 3 – 2015) 46% ABV

Dear followers! As you know by now, a couple of weeks ago I was very lucky to once again receive a package of samples from the nice people at Clydesdale (Sweden stop importer and seller of whisky and other beverages). The package contained a bunch of Kilchomans and now the time has finally come for me to try another one of the, namely the third batch of Kilchoman Loch Gorm that has been matured solely in sherry casks! Swedes will find it here. Ok, let’s see what we have here!

Nose:

Unfortunately I can’t really say that I pick up any specific or very evident notes of sherry cask… However, I do pick up something strongly reminding me of oranges or orange peel (maybe qumquats?) in combo with burnt sugar (maybe that’s the sherry influence in this whisky…). There’s also a fair amount of smooth vanilla. Beneath this top layer it’s of course impossible not to notice the very big peat, which has bold notes of burnt grass, pear and a very citric overnote in it. Nice, a really bold peat!

Palate:

Luckily there is some sherry-stuff on the palate! In the beginning I pick up a combo of salt and burnt sugar, sounds strange but I do… then of course comes the peat, a very rubber-y-ish kind of peat, rubber as in bicycle tires, moving on into sultana raisins so no really dark notes of sherry. The orange-y stuff actually comes back on the palate, or maybe it’s in there with the sugary stuff(?). We also have sweet and quite chewy liquorice. After a while everything becomes very, very dry, the whole tounge aswell as the upper-inner mouth… what ’s left in the late aftertaste is sort of a mix of peat, smoke and milkchocolate, kind of like having enjoyed a nice cigar… 

To sum up, please feel free to compare this tasting note with my tasting note of last years batch of the Loch Gorm. To me it's very interesting to see that I basically or in general picked up kind of the same things back then… I find it hard to believe that the sherry casks used for Loch Gorm are first fill, not that anyone has claimed that of course, but if I was the master distiller of Kilchoman I would definitely take this expression a bit longer and put the new-make into some really active and first fill sherry casks and let the fans of Kilchoman really experience that profile! Anyways, this expression of Kilchoman is of course nice in its own way, a very unique style and a very unique distillery for sure, but that is what I would like to experience!

A big thanks to the nice people at Clydesdale Original Scotch Whisky Co. Ltd Great Britain for sending me this tradesample! Please follow SamuelWhisky on my Zuckerberg-page by going here, and on my bird-page by going here. 

Copyright © and All Rights Reserved on all tasting notes by SamuelWhisky and pictures likewise belong to SamuelWhisky unless stated. If you would like to use any such material that belongs to SamuelWhisky or associated with SamuelWhisky, please ask by sending me an email to samuelkarlssonorebro@gmail.com Sláinte!

all rights/copyright to this pic belongs to Kilchoman distillery

Kilchoman 100% Islay (5th edition) 50% ABV

Dear friends and followers, thanks for stopping by to see what's happening in the world of SamuelWhisky! A couple of days ago I was very lucky to once again receive a package of samples from the nice people of Clydesdale (Swedens top importer and seller of whisky and other beverages). 

This time the package contained samples (whisky and a Bramble Liquer) from the Islay Distillery Kilchoman only! Out of the latest release of their "Machir Bay" and their dito "Loch Gorm" and "100% Islay" I decided to devote todays blog-entry to the latter. Here in Sweden it will be released on the 1st of June

The Kilchoman 100% Islay has as you can all understand been produced with barley only coming from Islay and having been malted and peated at the distillery. The yeast is not from Islay (and of course not the barrels/casks) but other than that, it is all Islay! It has been matured in ex-bourbon barrels which were filled between 2009 and 2010, meaning that this whisky should be 5yo at its youngest and 6yo at its oldest. This is how Anthony Wills (Kilchoman Founder and Managing Director) describes the difference between this Kilchoman expression and the regular expressions: 

"There is a clear difference between the 100% Islay range and other releases, the lighter peating level and maturation exclusively in ex-bourbon barrels gives the whisky a beautiful fragrance and balance (…) We expect that followers of Kilchoman will enjoy this latest Edition of the 100% Islay, the added maturation time compared to previous releases has given the whisky added depth and balance, we expect it to be a hit"

Well let's see if Anthony is right then shall we?! 

Nose:

Holding the glass at a few centimetres from my nose I get a really soft mint with touches of something green, some kind of mint-ish and/or herby-ish leaves, or maybe I’m just thinking about the herb you put in a Mojito… (?) at the same distance there is also touches of very mature pear and a quite ashy smoke. Movning the glass closer, almost dipping my nose in there, I also get citrus, moving towards orange peel mingling with smoked vanilla and cucumber-water. This Kilchoman does not scream ”PEAT!” right in your face, but you can’t really not notice the peat, it’s definitely there and always in combo with other stuff, I guess what I’m trying to say is that the peat does not stand alone, if you know what I mean? Really mature for it’s age and that wee touch of new-spirit that has been in a couple of earlier Kilchomans is not in this one. So a taste maybe?! 

Palate:

Beginning on smoked salt! A wee bit of new-spirit in the beginning of the palate mixed up with something rubber-ish, but that quickly goes away and moves on to what is definitely a nice handfull of peat, and salt, but still very soft, so not really a fist of peat that slaps you in the face, rather it caresses your mouth. This soft peat is not bad of course, on the contrary, I’d say that this is one of the most elegant and sophisticated Kilchomans I’ve ever tried! Really smooth, and the interesting thing is the very smooth parts of the early aftertaste, not really showing the mint, but almost as if there had been som orangepeel macerated in the whisky for a short period of time, giving this whisky a really nice touch of citrus, also the cucumber-water comes back. The late aftertaste is a combo of dry and mouthwatering, very interesting feeling!

A big thanks to the nice people at Clydesdale Original Scotch Whisky Co. Ltd Great Britain for sending me this tradesample! Please follow SamuelWhisky on my Zuckerberg-page by going here, and on my bird-page by going here. 

Copyright © and All Rights Reserved on all tasting notes by SamuelWhisky and pictures likewise belong to SamuelWhisky unless stated. If you would like to use any such material that belongs to SamuelWhisky or associated with SamuelWhisky, please ask by sending me an email to samuelkarlssonorebro@gmail.com Sláinte!

pic belongs to Clydesdale/Kilchoman Distillery

Kilchoman ’Loch Gorm’ (Batch 2 – 2014) 46% ABV

Friends! Yesterday something really nice happened to SamuelWhisky! A package of no less than seven samples arrived in my mail-box. The package was sent from from Clydesdale which is one of Swedens top importer and seller of whisk(e)y (and more beverages). I’m very honoured to be able to taste and to review such quality whiskies as those of the Clydesdale portfolio consisting of brands such as Berry Bross & Rudd, Blackadder/Blackadder Raw Cask, Douglas Laing & Co. to name just a few.

Today I will taste another brand that Clydesdale take care of, namely Kilchoman and their 2nd release of the ’Loch Gorm’! It has enjoyed it’s full maturation in fresh Oloroso sherry butts as stated on the Kilchoman website. It was distilled in 2009 and bottled in 2014. It is available basically world wide and was released in the beginning of April. 

For Swedish fans it will be available on the 2nd of June at the state monopoly, so you can probably imagine that it’s once again a great feeling to try a whisky such as this one before it hits the market (at least in Sweden). Okey, let’s try it! J

Nose:

The peat is in the center, and oooh, believe me this is a really kind of ”farmy” style of peat. Not ”rough” peat but very sort of out there, I’d really describe it as smoky (wet logs on the fire) and it is not often or in many peated style whiskies that I refer to peat as being smoky, but this one sure is! With regards to sherry influence on the nose, I wouldn’t really say that it is extreme, it isn’t really at the center of the attention, but maybe it’s reasonable to think that this should make an appearence more on the palate (?) On the contrary to sherry influence I’d say that we have more stuff on the bourbon side of things, something citrusy, very very acidulous in the very highest register and continuing on into a very salt fragrance… There is of course a touch of alcohol there (sort of like in matured de luxe tequila) but not as much as you could expect from a five year old… all in all on the nose, intriguing!

Palate:

Ooooh, very very very smoky and peppery style of peat! but before that, on the very tip of the tounge, we actually get some really salty influences indeed, almost salt licorice or even in combo with sea salt. The sherry influences I wouldn’t really say appear, at least not in terms of dried figs or raisins or so, but if it is there it is there in terms of something chocolate-ish. After the salt we do move on into a bit of rubber/burnt rubber and leather, how leather may taste I don’t know ; ) Anyway, the combo of rubber/leather/smoke soon becomes medium-dry in the mouthfeel, and yet again I’d say we are on the bourbon side of things, such as quite dry lemon-peel… The things going on in my mouth when I taste this one is really nice, the developement is quite intriguing and I have a hard time accepting that this is only five years old! And when it comes to the smoke style of peat, this is a real cracker!

Once again, a big thanks to the nice people at Clydesdale for sending me this sample! Sláinte!

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