13 February 2023

13/02/2023 Ledaig

C. Dully managed to get his dirty mitts on a cask of unpeated Ledaig, which he bottled. For whatever reason, the label on the actual bottle reads 'Tobermory', but an authority tells me... The spirit called Tobermory, which is the usual unpeated expression from Tobermory distillery, goes through a different distillation process, hence the distinction. How exciting!


Ledaig 23yo d.1995 (46.8%, C. Dully, Refill Hogshead, C#3636, 295b): nose: well, in line with the colour, this nose is pure white wine. Light, fruity, sweetish, and refreshing, this has all the markers of a Riesling, or a Gewürztraminer (in truth, it has notes of Sancerre or Chablis too, minus the flint and the dryness). Pressed green grapes of a sweet variety, a cloud of soft wood, and even flowers (chamomile is my guess). That wood comes to prominence, after a few minutes' breathing, and starts a lively jig with the lovely fruit. There are whiffs in which the white wine is stored in Cubitainer (aka Polypin), rather than bottles, amusingly enough, and maybe it has apple juice too. The second nose has an increased freshness, be that mint or pine (though not as concentrated as Gocce Pino), with a pinch of vanilla sugar, and much less white wine. Water mostly swaps the wine and mint for lukewarm chicory infusion, or chamomile tea -- or a combination of the two. Mouth: wide, acidic, the attack is a lot less subtle than expected, and a lot saltier! In fact, we have this strange blend of white wine, wood shavings, and table salt that kind of works, but is hardly reminiscent of whisky. How quaint! The texture is thin, close to diluted grape juice. Once the mouth gets over the initial acidity, a gentle bitterness settles in, augmented by a chemical, mint-y sweetness (think: Tic Tac). The second sip confirms the Tic Tac note, while the salt seems more integrated -- but it is still there, alright, growing bolder with each second it spends on the tongue. Water makes it very thin. It shows some tame flowers and a gentle bitterness, perhaps akin to that of almond biscuits, yet so subtle it is easy to miss. Finish: almost absent, for a good five or ten seconds, it eventually develops a more-pronounced sweetness, with mint-y, thick vanilla custard, limoncello, and the clear warmth of an eau-de-vie. A warmth that numbs the inside of the lips, at second gulp, ripe with crushed pine needles in resin. An obvious bitterness appears, towards the death, that leaves the mouth as if having chewed on a pine cone. With water, imagine a hot chocolate made with (too much) hot water and (not enough) milk chocolate, infused and cooled off to hardly higher than room temperature. Not sure this swims well, in other words. An interesting curiosity. Honestly, I cannot see Burn Stewart Distillers (proprietors of Tobermory) turn this into a wide commercial success, but for the curious drammer, it is original. 7/10 (Thanks for the sample, CD)

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