Nose: Leathery and dusty, tannins, dried date nuggets, chestnuts, dried grass in piles, loquat, plum syrupiness, green wood, fig newtons.

Palate: Chocolate bitters, luxardo cherries, subtle and delicate peat, bowmore soap, tobacco leaf and leather, the dried dates, plums, and fig newtons are present. Tree bark and green wood, cinnamon, Frankly this gets much better with a big mouthful, but I had such a small sample.

Rating: 5 (Shane) 6 (Ryan) / 10 – Intriguing and shockingly gentle for the abv. It’s delicate and nuanced and very interesting. It’s hard to rate this with such a small sample as this would likely benefit from a much bigger mouthful to truly appreciate. Shane struggles with the core DNA that is Bowmore’s profile which presents for him as soapy. A legendary pour and fun to drink, however neither of us was blown away…what is in a name?