Talisker 11 Year The Lustrous Creature of the Depths (2022 Special Release)

“As our legend goes, when the tides at Talisker Bay flowed with an unusual force, a luminous creature was drawn from the blackest depths, flooding the deep-sea darkness with its captivating glow. This powerful luminescence was carried on storm-tossed currents to the Talisker distillery, illuminating its new-make spirit. In that spirit too, the vivid luminosity shone, its classic smokiness fading before a radiant tide of spice-bright sweetness rarely seen.” Erm. Jellyfish. Sure. Straight to it then… N: Deep and purposeful. This is the sea spray soaked wooden timbers of a battered ship: tannic, briny, slight seaweed and iodine. Waxy furniture polish, lemon peel, vanilla and warm toasty malt. P: Oily, viscous and with a salt driven textural element. Peppery with a trend towards the chilli catch of most Talisker. A gentle crisp sweetness of lightly caramelised apple or pear is the backing for a salty and tannic smoke. The smoke leans towards bbq but doesn’t get too carried away. Tannins stay behaved and bring warmth and a slight darkness to an otherwise quite bright and lively sweet malt. F: Long. Drying, tannic smoke feeds into more salt and gives way to lasting chilli. A drop of water does little to the nose but is transformative to the palate. Fruity sweetness comes crashing forward and takes the oily textural mouthfeel almost away completely the salt becomes more mineral driven and stony but some of the furniture polish depth, tannic smoke, and touches of bbq are lost for me. Drink this neat, although saying that, i think i just found apricot in the palate, thats bright and unexpected. I’m all out of Talisker. Well, new ones anyway. I’m happy to see T10, Surge, Storm and Parley X on my shelf. I will confirm, Island malts are reigning supreme for me. Talisker are almost unwaveringly brilliant. They have had a few misses in my mind (Port Ruighe, Skye) and some ‘just good’ fare (Storm, T15 2019), but on the whole they are just excellent. When that salty smoke hits it is transportive. Wild seas, crashing waves, salty spray, sea monsters. Bring it. The bbq smoke, touches of sweetness, deftness of touch from tannic wood. My word those Skye folk know exactly what they are doing. Truly like the luminescent jellyfish of the abyss, Talisker could suck me in and drown me in its depths beguilled all the way. Distiller whisky taste #263 [Pictured here with a little clutch of corundum (rubies) to round out this run of Taliskers with rubies, sapphires, and emeralds. These are from Madagascar and I should probably tell you that they are really old, formed from the metamorphism of some mud under stupendous pressures and temperatures and are ] Talisker running scores: T10: 4/5 T18: 4.75/5 Skye: 3.25/5 Port Ruighe: 2.75/3 Storm: 3.5/5 Dark Storm: 4.25/5 Surge: 4/5 57 North: 4.25/5 X Parley Wilder Seas: 4.25/5 T8 2018 Special Release: 4.5/5 T15 2019 Special Release: 3.5/5 T8 2020 Special Release: 4.25/5 T8 2021 Special Release: 4.5/5 T11 2022 Special Release: 4/5

Talisker is one of the finest distilleries of all the world. It is my favorite alongside with Glendronach, and i fetch all the expressions i can that they release. Well, in 2022, Diageo gave us their "Special Releases" and the Talisker one featured a Jellyfish, who is an animal that lives in the depths of the sea, which is the main theme of Talisker expressions nowadays. This natural cask strength whisky was bottled at 55.1%abv On the nose, it is a little dim, not the best Talisker has ever done. Apple, salt. Beach feeling; a Plavova dessert, unexpectedly sweet. On the palate, it is delicious; it got back on track. Acid gooseberries, prunes with salt, a lovely red pepper note and milk powder formula. After a first sip, it became a sweet vanilla ice cream. Aftertaste is by far the best part of it. A heavy salt note; kelp, maritime feeling overall. Wow, really amazing. Star aniseed. Overall, this is very enjoyable, it doesn't feel as a natural cask strength dram, you can't feel the 55.1%abv anywhere. It lacks complexity and the nose is too dim that is the worst part. In conclusion, this is a very good single malt, but this is not the best Talisker you will ever have. It still manages to score highly, but for a Talisker i would say that they can definitively do a better job. My score for it is 89 over 100.

(Good Spirits Co. Glasgow – Virtual Premium Whisky Tasting, 14 January 2023). Nose: BBQ meat, Frazzles crisps, furniture polish, citrus, coastal salt/saline Palate: Sweet, peppery, peat smoke, bonfire, oak char, dried fruit, salt/saline. Savoury salted caramel Finish: Long finish. Peppery, tannic dry smoke, salty. More dry peat. First fill ex-bourbon casks. This is a sweeter and saltier version than the standard 10 year old. Very tasty and very easy to drink - a quaffable dram! The peat is not as 'in your face' as the standard range, so this is somehow softer and milder than normal. Came last out of the six drams, with 4% of the final vote for favourite of the night. 64% of those present said they enjoyed the whisky.

Color: Light marigold. Nose: Black pepper, chilis, sweet red berries, and a hint of vanilla. Can smell both the ex-bourbon and red wine casks. Palate: Very classic Talisker. Soft smoke, brine, and peppery bite. A little light fudge and candied apples as well. Finish: Prickly and rich. Strong barrel character with round, meaty, savory notes. Smoked pork fat comes to mind. Diluted: Gentle peat marries with wildflowers on the nose. Palate and finish see more of the bourbon barrels' sweeter notes, with just a little salty oyster brine.

Light peaty smoke on the nose. Vanilla oak orchard fruits. Mild smokiness, revealing some peat that develops into stronger smoke on the palate. Very smoky and peaty finish. This is delightful.

Beautiful aroma, wonderfully balanced and just heavenly. There is smoke on the tongue but mostly a spice explosion. Fiery and spicy, super powerful but it balances the proof well. Love this.