Arran Machrie Moor Cask Strength 3rd Edition (2016 Release)

Nose: Smoke and peat, pine resin. Light floral and fruity notes way down deep. It’s a somehow distant, very dry and ethereal nose. Palate: Taken neat the arrival is dry and spicy, then there is an intense alcohol heat. Suddenly the development springs from nowhere with an explosion of fruity flavours – grapefruit, lemon, pineapple, cranberries, goji berries – but then it fades just as quickly as it appeared. One of the most fleeting developments I’ve ever tasted. There is a subtle background smokiness throughout. Finish: Medium, a lingering astringent and hot sweetness with some oak tannin. The aromas and flavours of this whisky are reserved, distant and locked up tight as a drum by the high alcohol level. It has a fruity and lightly smoky character overall, but the fruitiness is dry rather than sweet. When taken neat it’s most enjoyable 5 minutes after finishing the dram, when the palate has relaxed and overcome the alcohol shock and the after-echoes of the whisky reveal its full character. When diluted down to under 50% it is much more approachable, but there is a fine line between taming the high abv and washing out the delicate character. If adding water do so very slowly, drop by drop, and allow it to sit and recover for 10 minutes. A curious malt that is almost but not quite immensely satisfying. I can’t help but feel that it was bottled at far too high a strength for such a delicate and subtle whisky and I prefer the non-cask strength Machrie Moor expressions. They seem more balanced and complete. It's also one of the most natural presentations of a whisky I've ever encountered. Add a couple of drops of water and within moments a thick mist arises in the spirit - it must be seething with heavy oils and has only had the most cursory of filtrations. Yay! “Good” : 83/100 (3.5 stars)

I previously had a bottle of the Arran Machrie Moor but only the regular 46% ABV version. That bottle was empty surprisingly quickly. I really liked it and that made me particularly interested in the cask strength version of it. On the nose a very classic peat included in a great smooth fruitiness. As I am a fan of Arran whisky in general (which is usually unpeated) I recognize a familiar fruit - wood - spice mix which pushes the peat into the background after some time nosing it. The 56.2% ABV are barely noticeable. There are sweet cookies on the nose, gooseberry jam, salty butter, cold herbal tea (with peppermint), apple sauce. The palate arrives intensely with that high ABV right of the bat and cold peat. Then it becomes acidic like lemon peel and slowly more sweet. The finish is a bid like cold bread roasted on a barbecue the day after. Interestingly enough this one at cask strength isn’t as good at the regular 46% version. Some added water makes it much more accessible in way that you get some fresh orchard fruits and fresh black pepper and a more mellow character over all. Interesting for sure. Shows that Arran understands peated whisky as well and I am really looking forward to some of their sherried peat expression. They have some limited releases in that range and also an exclusive bottling called Fingals Cut. They are not easy to get but I think they might be worth it. Also I really am looking forward to first official releases from Lagg Distillery which is Arrans peat-distillery that is operating for a few year already in a standalone location on the isle of Arran. Exiting things going on there in the south west.

This is an interesting dram. It tastes like a grain whiskey in some ways. The alcohol is strong. The flavors - vanilla, floral, a touch of spice - come fast and all at once and fade as the alcohol kicks in. I haven't tried the non-cask version, but I'd like to. I have a feeling this is one instance in which the lower ABV will allow the flavors to blossom. The smoke is lovely, however.

Really fresh peat notes. The sting of the 58% is real. Smells sweet like a teriyaki beef jerky. Behind the alcohol burn there is a lovely full underlying sweetness of red apples, grass, dried plum, and pure chocolate. The finish is surprisingly short with a little weird bitterness like orange pith and overextracted coffee.

I preferred the Caol Ila moscatel finish. This one is an interesting dram, you get an intense sweet peat hit up front which immediately dissipates and a blast of ethanol washes the flavour away a leaves a long warming glow then a weird pear flavour on the mid tongue. Interesting but not a big fan.

Nose: vegetal, natural, sour or green apple, lime, burning cedar, latex, Taste: grass, zingy, tart, green apple, damp beach or camp fire, DAMP, Finish: grass, long and pleasant Green apple big time