Meat

Kilchoman 100% Islay

Kilchoman 100% Islay

Still barely over a decade old and thus not quite ready to release aged statements, Kilchoman has used their youth to explore variations on their spirit, often in very creative expressions. One of the rising trends over the past several years has been a focus on terroir. The 100% Islay (3rd Edition) is a dram where the entirety of the process is done on Islay. The barley is grown there, malted there, distilled, matured and bottled there. It’s bottled at a higher alcohol strength but the peat level is lowered compared to their other releases. That is not a common occurrence in today’s world. First launched in 2010, the bottle in this review is from 2012.

Benromach 10 Year

Benromach 10 Year

Benromach is a distillery that wants to take you back a stretch. Back before distilleries and whisky production became so automated, so dependent on technology. Eschewing computerized processes (do they allow pocket calculators?), this distillery looks to the early 20th century for guidance, when Speyside whiskies were made using peat smoke on site and everything was done by hand. In these days of spirit conglomerates, special attention is given to the artistry provided by the three distillers working at Benromach. It is a whisky that promotes the traditions of scotch production and promises to reward the patience needed.