Bowmore Designed by Aston Martin 18 Year Old - 43%
From the distillery website
Performance is the force which unites the Aston Martin DB Mk III and Bowmore 18 Years Old. Together they celebrate exceptional attention to detail, embracing the absolute complexity at the heart of both these beautiful creations.
A high performing single malt, deeply complex, rare and dignified from time well spent in the finest Oloroso and Pedro Ximénez is united with an alluring Aston Martin which encapsulates technical prowess and the optimal execution.
This whisky forms part of the new Global Travel Retail ‘Designed By Aston Martin’ Collection, alongside 10 and 15 year old expresssions.
We were joined on the tasting session by Master Blender, Ron Welsh. His comments regarding this expression is that the whisky is produced by taking the 18yo Domestic expression and marrying it for a year in 2nd fill PX European Oak Butts.
Tasting notes
Appearance: Auburn gold, forms a thin line which beads before slowly falling as thin, oily legs.
Nose: Dundee fruit cake, Char Siu pork, dark chocolate coated toffee, dried figs and prunes, subtle sweet smoke.
Palate: Terry’s dark chocolate orange, salted caramel sauce, soft stone fruit, zesty citrus fruit, gentle ashy peat smoke, a hint of sea salt and a mild note of Halls menthol and eucalyptus lozenges.
Finish: Soft and lingering, dried fruit, caramel, dry smoke, mild nutty oak and cinnamon warmth.
Overall: Unsurprisingly there are many similarities to the core 18 year-old expression, with the extra finishing in PX adding a little more complexity and depth. As with the standard expression the mouthfeel is a little thin on arrival, although it does become creamier with time in the mouth. However, there is still that impression of ‘what might have been’ if the abv was a little higher and chill-filtration wasn’t used.
The smoke is subtle, adding another layer rather than dominating, and marries well with the notes of dark chocolate orange, dried fruit and coastal saltiness. The low abv means addition of water tends to flatten the whisky very quickly so this is one best served neat.
The current Global Travel Retail price for this whisky is a little over £93, so a small saving on the standard 18 and, for me anyway, this is the more enjoyable of the two expressions.
If you would like more information on this whisky, or the Bowmore distillery, follow the link to the company website.
Transparency: this sample was received free of charge for independent review. The author has no affiliation with the distillers and no goods or other incentives were exchanged, offered or requested.
