The Kilchoman PX Finish Cask 680 (2010-2015)

Tasting notes:
I came to this dram expecting to ready myself for something from Man’s Life magazine: that is to say, I was readying myself to be truly manly in the face of what I thought would be a bracing whiskey. But it turned out to be remarkably subtle: instead of struggling against flesh-eating herbivores, the PX finish here creates an effect much more like a serape-draped Clint Eastwood offering a flinty stare and a muted snarl to the four guys he’s asking to apologize to his mule. The nose is understated, yet pretty and balanced and wholly intoxicating.

The mouth is really exciting and round, not unlike a Super Ball to a 5 year-old–or a phat booty to a rapper. And despite the considerable burn (“Midges Swarmed My Tongue!”), we agreed that the mouth surpasses the nose in both richness and winsomeness.

The finish sighs like the remnants of a delicious meal of varied dishes eaten around a campfire with green wood and no wind. There’s burnt toast dipped in remelted Edam cheese wax, exhales of Longbottom leaf tobacco, and a coating of cognac drying along the inside rim of a metal cup. It’s the perfect ending to a day spent protecting a woman in red by slaying hordes of tiny vicious beasts.

Rating:

 
 
   
–Our thanks to ImpEx for the sample!