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Diageo's 2022 Special Release takes Talisker in an unexpected direction: lightly peated and surprisingly balanced. Citrus and stone fruit lead over restrained smoke, with genuine coastal character throughout. Naturally coloured, non-chill-filtered at 55.1% ABV, this shows real skill in cask selection. A departure from typical Talisker, but executed with genuine confidence.
Glenglassaugh's coastal Highland distillery has truly found its voice with this triple-cask expression. Stone fruits, honey, and maritime character blend beautifully at 45% ABV with proper production ethics. After over two decades of silence, they've launched a flagship that shows real skill and ambition. Worth seeking out if you want something that stands apart.
GlenAllachie's peated Speyside is only five years old, but it doesn't taste it. The Sherry One brings dark chocolate, toffee, and peat smoke together with genuine complexity. Matured in bourbon then finished in PX and Oloroso, it's non-chill-filtered and naturally coloured at 48%. A proper whisky that punches above its age and price.
Ledaig is Tobermory's peated expression from the Isle of Mull, and this 10 year old has quietly built a cult following among those wanting proper island peat without eye-watering Islay prices. Non-chill-filtered, naturally coloured and bottled at 46.3%, it promises medicinal smoke, briny salt and bright citrus. Is the value-star reputation all hype, or does it actually deliver? Spoiler: it does…
Glenmorangie is a name even non-drinkers recognise, and the Quinta Ruban is their port-finished Highlander — now 14 years old after extending its time in ruby port pipes to four years. Port finishes can be hit or miss, so does this one earn its benchmark reputation? Expect dark fruits, chocolate-covered cherries and a silky, non-chill-filtered texture, with gentle spice keeping the sweetness honest.
Compass Box divides opinion — boundary-pushing innovators to some, fancy bottles and marketing to others. Orchard House is their fruit-forward blended malt, and it's exactly what it promises: bright apple, pear and pineapple over golden syrup and buttery pastry, finishing on fruit and vanilla buttercream. A genuinely easy-drinking showcase of Scotch's lighter side — but is bright and breezy enough to win me over?
Lochlea keeps cropping up. This young Ayrshire distillery only started in 2018 but already does things differently — growing its own barley on the estate for control over the whole process. The farm-to-bottle care shows: pear and orange marmalade, an oily palate of golden syrup, buttered soda bread and almonds, and a long, peppery-barley finish. A genuinely impressive dram for such a young name.
After the Barrel Reserve made an impression, I was keen to dig deeper into Arran. The 10 year old sits at the heart of the range and brings sherry casks into the mix — supposedly their signature style. It's fresh and herbal: green apple, pear and lemon zest over sweet malt, with cinnamon and hazelnut on a clean medium finish. A real step up — and quintessential Arran?
Laphroaig divides people like few others — you love the medicinal peat or you stay well clear. The standard 10 has converted thousands; this cask-strength version cranks everything up. Expect a wall of bonfire smoke, TCP, iodine, seaweed and tar at a hefty 58.5%, with a long, gloriously smoky finish. The classic turned up to maximum volume — brave or foolish?
Special releases come thick and fast these days, but Fèis Ìle bottlings still pull me in. This 2024 Bunnahabhain is a 14 year old port-cask release from Islay's annual festival. The port shows gloriously: raspberry, strawberry and dark chocolate, jammy and rich at a hefty 58.7%, with that signature coastal salt lingering through a long finish. Something a little special — and absolutely stunning.
Ardbeg commands real respect among Islay devotees, and Uigeadail — named after the loch that feeds the distillery — is often called one of the finest in the core range. It's a powerhouse: earthy, medicinal peat smoke at a warming 54.2%, lifted by a layer of sherry-cask richness, with a long, gloriously smoky finish. Big boots to fill — does it live up to the hype?
Campbeltown has always intrigued me — once the whisky capital of Scotland with 30-odd distilleries, now down to three. Glen Scotia is one of them, and the 15 wears its origins proudly: a maritime nose of sea air and brine, a gently saline, warming palate, and a long coastal finish laced with spice and oak. A proper Campbeltown dram — was it worth the wait?
There's something quietly rebellious about Bunnahabhain. While the rest of Islay shouts about peat, this remote distillery lets sherry and coastal character lead. The unpeated 12, their flagship, is rich and inviting: nutty dried fruit — raisins and figs — Christmas-cake spice and a whisper of coastal salt, all remarkably smooth at 46.3%. Proof Islay can do far more than peat bombs.
GlenAllachie's 12 impressed me with Billy Walker's vision for the place — transformed since 2017 from quiet blend-fodder into a cult single malt. The 15 doubles down: an unashamedly sherried wave of raisins, dates, figs, caramel and dark chocolate, with cherry cordial and orange marmalade before a drier finish. Big, bold Speyside in the GlenDronach mould — does the extra age earn its keep?
Sometimes a whisky takes you by surprise. I thought I had Speyside figured out — sweet and fruit-forward — but Benromach 10 is a throwback to an older, increasingly rare style of the region. Toffee apple and sherried dried fruit meet a lovely oily texture and a whisper of smoke, finishing dry and gently spiced. Classic Speyside with a characterful twist — and a real bargain.
I've a real soft spot for Fettercairn — they tread the line between classy and affordable rather well, and drew one of the biggest crowds at Whisky Live. The 16 is a step up, and a fine showcase of the distillery's signature tropical fruit: pineapple sweetness, stewed orchard fruit and a long finish of winter berries and ginger. Little wonder it's since joined the core range.
My first encounter with Arran — the island's first distillery in over a century, built from scratch at Lochranza in 1995. The Barrel Reserve is light and fresh: lemon and sour green apple over a gentle malt base, bright and zippy, with a short finish of malt, vanilla and oak. A refreshing, unpretentious introduction — time to see what the fuss is about.
A first on my Centurion quest — an Irish whiskey. Redbreast Lustau is made at Midleton in Cork and finished in sherry butts. It's a rich, smooth pot-still dram: dark sherried fruit, liquorice and almond up front, plummy and peppery on the palate, with a long finish of peppercorn, allspice and that lingering liquorice. A change of country and style — and a real treat.
Glenfiddich is wrapped up in my childhood — every visitor to Elgin got the Dufftown tour. Project XX blends the cask picks of twenty experts into a single whisky. It's an intriguing mix: apple blossom and orchard fruit on the nose giving way to a woodier, fudgier palate, and a long, spicy finish with a bitter coffee edge. A clever idea — but does it work in the glass?
GlenDronach has been on a rollercoaster — closures, reopenings, big-name distillers, lauded old stock giving way to new. The sherried 15, the 'Revival', carries a lot of expectation. It delivers: an intense, fresh fruitiness of orange and cherry, an oily palate layered with peppercorn, clove and nutmeg, and a long marmalade finish. A benchmark 'sherry bomb' — does it justify the hype?
One glance tells you this is meant to be a 'fine' whisky — royal-blue foil, classy label, rich colour, all trading on a regal history out on the Cawdor Estate. Royal Brackla has the look, and the 12 has the depth too: Christmas-pudding dried fruit, syrupy plum and cherry, warm spice and a touch of chocolate. But at nearly £70, does it back up the price?
I'm rounding out my little 'side quest' through Loch Lomond's whiskies with arguably their base expression — the 12-year-old from the core range (not Inchmoan or Inchmurrin, confusing I know). As I covered a few weeks ago, the core range blends a little sweetness with just a hint of smoke. So how does the entry point hold up?
Further down the Loch Lomond rabbit hole: the 14 year old, 'Spiced Apple and Soft Smoke'. The Inchmoan 12 and the 10 both impressed me, so I'm starting to suspect this distillery is quietly excellent. Stewed apple and toffee — almost a sweet tarte tatin — meet warm Christmas spice and a gentle, lingering smoke. Lovely stuff at around £50; is Loch Lomond the journey's dark horse?
Loch Lomond makes a bewildering variety of whiskies, and the Inchmoan is their peated strand. The 12 turned out to be a real highlight: a gentle, syrupy nose gives way to a bolder palate of smoked bacon, black pepper and bonfire embers over creamy malt, with a long, warming finish touched by dark chocolate. Smoke and sweetness in fine balance — and keenly priced.
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