The Peated Malts Of Distinction Tweet Tasting!

The Tweet Tasting Line Up

Beam Suntory has lined up four of their most iconic malts for the latest Twitter Tasting to hit the net.

The malts sampled were:-

The Ardmore Legacy

Connemara Original

Bowmore Small Batch

Laphroaig Select

Ideal as entry level malts into each brands character they also come reasonably priced – always welcome news in light of recent trends for expensive limited editions and premium bottlings.

If you want to catch up on what all the tasters had to say you can view the tweets by searching for the hash tag #PeatedMalts on Twitter.

So, what did I think?

Here are my tasting notes … and the one which was my favourite on the night!

Tasting Notes – The Ardmore Legacy ( 40% )

A new expression, lightly peated and described as sweet and uplifting.

Nose: Quite sweet, heathery and pleasantly peaty. There’s a touch of smoke n’ oaky wood in there as well with vanilla and toffee coming through later on.

Palate: Sweet, like icing sugar or those sugared rice crispies I got when I was a kid! Quite muted peat with very little in the way of smokiness.

Finish: Moderately long, spicy finish with a hint of lingering pepper sweetness.

Overall: A delicatly peated dram, ideal for those wishing to dip a toe into peats dark waters – a primer for those new to the dark side!

Tasting Notes – Connemara Original ( 40% )

Nose: Grassy with aromas of lemon. Very fruity with grapefruit mixed in. Initially I wouldn’t really know it was peated but then black treacle and a little peat comes thru!

Palate: Lovely black treacle, sweet liquorice and something sugary! (Ably described as “granulated sugar on the tip of the tongue” by @ben_cops. Nice hint of peat on this dram …. and praline.

Finish: Short, spicy finish with a whack of pepper! Slightly tobacco.

Overall: Full of surprises this dram – from the sugary sweetness to the liquorice, it all combines to form a very distinctive taste.

Tasting Notes – Bowmore Small Batch ( 40% )

Bowmore Small Batch is matured in first & second fill ex bourbon barrels.

Nose: Peppery plasticine, richly smoked citrus and a little vanilla.

Palate: Sweet apricots with zingy lemon and grapefruit!

Finish: Slight tanin but this gives way to a richly spiced finish with with smoke, peat and lots of Yum!

Overall: A warm & glowy dram, well liked by my fellow tweeters on the night and perfect for anyone wishing to spend a pleasant evening dramming by the fire!

Tasting Notes – Laphroaig Select ( 40% )

Laphroaig Select takes its name from the special selection of American and European casks, chosen for their unique character that they give during maturation.

Olorosso sherry butts, straight American white oak (non-filled with bourbon), PX seasoned hogs heads, Quarter Casks and finally First Filled Bourbon Casks were all used to vary cask maturation techniques enabling the creation of 6 new flavour combinations that were then tested by ‘The Friends of Laphroaig’.

From this they chose their favourite which then became LAPHROAIG SELECT.

Nose: Lovely smoke and peat hit straight away! Sweet, heathery overtones

Palate: Sweet sherry floral flavours with a peaty backnote.

Finish: Mild spice n’ pepper, lingering warm finish.

Overall: Another hit for this popular dram – lots more peat than the other three drams, but I guess that’s not surprising coming from a Laphroaig – the King of peats!

My Favourite On The Night

Out of the 4, I think it’s got to be the Laphroaig Select.

Milder than the traditional Laphroaig but it still upholds the best in peat traditions – lovely!

Second choice would be the Connemara – but then I do love a bit of licourice!

Many thanks to Steve at The Whisky Wire (@TheWhiskyWire) for a great dram evening and the team at Focus PR (@FocusPR) for sending the samples!

And of course, Beam Suntory, without whom!