Té Bheag Connoisseurs' Blended Whisky

TÉ BHEAG Nan Eilean 40% ABV 2nd Pour Non-Chill-Filtered A Blended Scottish Whisky from the Isle of Skye Blended By Praban na Linne (Prah Bawn Nah Linne) Linne=(small body of water) Shabeen of the Pool Shabeen=Roadhouse, house pub Let it sit in the Glass 30 minutes COLOR: Medium Reddish Brown with a number of Legs Running Slowly. Nice Ring NOSE: Brine, Licorice PALETTE: Light Creamy Mouth Feel Sweet Arrival with Licorice. Peat Smoke Rises nicely as I swirl it; Mixing with the Sweetness. Some Light Pepper. Light Sweetness remains amidst the Peat Smoke. FINISH: Light Sweetness going down; followed by Drying with Some Pepper, Briney Notes remain as I breathe along with Licorice and a Hint of Peat Smoke This is my 2nd Glass, In My opinion, this is a Very Good Blended Peated Scottish Whiskey. The Light Sweetness on the Palette mixes nicely with BUT is Not overwhelmed by the Peat Smoke. A Flavorful combination. I would prefer a Thicker Mouth Feel from this NON-CHILL FILTERED Blend, but there is a Nice combination of Licorice Sweetness with Peat Smoke. As an IRISH Gaelic Speaker, I greatly appreciate the significant use of SCOTTISH Gaelic in the Name and the rest of the Label. The Isle of Skye along with some of the other Scottish Islands has a small but significant Gaelic Speaking population and this Blender is Keen to uphold it, MAITH SIBH (Mah or My Shiv) Good For You (Plural)

Sometimes in a blend it ends up being a contest between a prize-fighter whisky and a journeyman whisky. The prize-fighter whisky comfortably gained the upper hand here. But I enjoyed the bout. And that journeyman whisky didn’t just roll over. I winced at some of its blows. Té Bheag is a blended Scotch from the Isle of Skye which has a high malt content (40%) but I’d say that the grainy elements are the plodding palooka in this case. Shuffling away from the grainy elements, the better aspects of the nose were a briny maritime breeze, seaweed and salt, shortbread biscuits, roasted nuts, woodland aroma (resin?) and the pleasant smell of firelighters. The taste hits all the right notes but not at the right volume. Light peat, light salt/brine, lemon rind and lightly sherried sweetness. Is that a little Talisker pepper I detect on the finish? It melts away well with malty grapefruit and a lingering oak that veers close to being too tannic. Overall it’s a fine blend. Much better in my opinion than the blended malt Monkey Shoulder. A better Grouse. A less famous one, however. But spread the word quietly - it deserves more recognition.

How are you celebrating/did you celebrate Burns Night? I'm having shortbread and sipping Té Bheag, which quite literally means "a wee dram" in Gaelic. My first nosing of this whisky brings light peat, black tea and orange. Later, I can smell leather bound books in a forgotten corner of the library with hints of tobacco and honey. This is a scotch that would claim to put hair on one's chest. While neat, there's a fair amount of heat that rolls from the moment the glass touches my mouth down to my stomach. The initial caramel-peat flavour quickly morphs, via a dash of pepper, to a tangy brined, almost sour quality. The finish is medium-long and makes my lips tingle. Oak and smoke return, like a drag from a nice cigar. I wish that the main palate notes stuck around longer; it's a quick rollercoaster through Flavour Town. I do enjoy this dram as a better performing affordable blend for those who don't mind a bit of smoke and salt. Slàinte! 7.25/10

Four-star quality, five-star value. On the nose, there's thick honey, light smoke (campfire, not vegetal), big seaside-y brine. Moist cake (vanilla!) and nuts. A bit of water brings out some light fruitiness. On the taste, more peat and smoke, big brine, and a nice butterscotch. Peppery and citrusy. Dry smoke & spice finish. Canada and France account for more than 50% of Té Bheag's sales; I'm not sure you can even *find* it in a lot of other places. But it's sub-$40 Cdn. and just a remarkably lovely value whisky. Punches well above its weight-class.

Chocolaty toffee on the nose, hint of peat and smoke, but with something slightly, vanishingly metallic that I cannot quite place. On the palate, sweet 'n' salty notes, along with that peaty smoke you expect, concluding with a lingering, warm, savoury finish. An impressive performance for a NAS blend, and for $40.50 in Ontario, a great value.

Bouteille surprenante. Goût très boisé, comme si Dalmore avait fabriqué un NAS abordable. Par ailleurs, c’est plus boisé que tourbé ou sucré, selon moi. Par contre, le goût est vraiment très court. Pour environ 40$ c’est une belle bouteille de semaine qui fait honte à personne de sortir avec de la visite. Goûté chez M. Drolet en 2021-09.