Claxton's The Single Cask - Bunnahabhain Staoisha 2013 - 6 Years Old

This is the third part out of a five-part series of reviews of a private tasting of Independent Bottlers in my local liquor shop. Our personal line-up: 1. Càrn Mòr - Strictly Limited - Benrinnes 10 Year Old 2009 2. Hunter Laing - Talisker 2008 - 9 Year Old Old Malt Cask 3. Claxton's The Single Cask - Bunnahabhain 2013 - Staoisha - 6 Years Old 4. Caol Ila 5-Year-Old 2009 - Hepburn's Choice (Langside) 5. Ardnamurchan Spirit 2019 AD While I’ve had my share of bottles and tastes of Independent Bottlers by now, Claxton’s was entirely new to me. The host explained the ‘Staoisha’ would prove to be an entirely different Bunna experience, even more so than with the Sherry influenced Talisker I tried. While I had tried several peated Bunna’s in the past, the host promised that I’d be surprised, hinting this Claxton’s bottling to be significantly more peated. Comparing it to the ‘Moine’ for example would do it no justice. My son agreed, and we were soon met by a strong but wonderfully earthy peat smoke, with an idea of BBQ. The palate kicks in with a ton of pleasant smoke, salt, and tropical fruits. Such a joy. The aftertaste kept lingering on for a long time, and expressed a meaty smokiness, with added sea salt. This Claxton’s Bunnahabhain was perfectly in balance, and full of flavor. The high ABV - 58,20% - wasn’t obvious at all. Both my son and I were very pleased with this one. Would one of the last two prove to be even better? To keep reading, the other reviews should be available here on Distiller/Whizzky very soon. To find out the winner (read: the bottle we purchased), see the last review (Ardnamurchan).

@wfnn 2022 (was de 8yo St. Julien Red Wine)