Country: Scotland
Brand: MacLeod's
Type: Single Malt Whisky
Region: Island
Age: 8 Years
Alcohol: 40%
Date: 14/09/2013
Colour: Dark Ember with a touch of Orange.
Nose: First impressions are Leather, Rubber, Tar, Smoke, Diesel, light Iodine, Peat, Salt and Oak. Give it some time to open up. After some 20 minutes I find some Dried Fruits (Apple), Nuts and hints of Sherry and Ginger Ale. It's Maritime and Earthy at the same time but not really convincing either way. After nosing this Mystery Dram I would rule out Arran, Highland Park and Jura as possible distilleries where this Single Malt was produced.
Palate: The delivery is Sweet and a bit Thin as a result of the low ABV. Smoke, Peat, Tar, Leather and Oak are accompanied by Pepper, Espresso, Salted Butter and Toffee.
Finish: Medium-Long, rather Sweet and slightly Meaty with Smoke, Earth, light Leather, Nuts and a Pepper tone that reminds me of Talisker.
With a bit of Water, the Nose of the Macleod's Island becomes quite Thin although some Malt and Honey appear. Palate and Finish become Sweeter and Watery. Some light Licorice pops up. You can carefully add a few drops to see where that will lead you.
Rating: 80
Nose: 20.5 – Taste: 19.5 – Finish: 20 – Overall: 20
General Remarks: The Island region includes all Scottish Isles with distilleries except Islay. That leaves Jura, Orkney, Skye, Arran and Mull. This Island Single Malt was produced and bottled by Ian MacLeod Distillers Ltd, an Independent Bottler established in 1934 and a.o. owner of the Glengoyne Distillery and various Blends such as Isle of Skye and Smokehead. Many people will know their Chieftain's range as well. The Island is part of a small collection known as MacLeod's Scotch Whisky Trail that also includes a Single Malt from Lowland, Speyside, Highland and Islay as well as the before mentioned Isle of Skye Blend. A full bottle of the Island costs around 45 US Dollars. A Miniature Gift Set is also widely available. (See Picture Below).
Drinking Experience Neat: Okay/Good
Conclusion: The Nose is quite interesting actually. More Islay than Islands in my opinion. Maritime at first but with Earthier tones later on. Palate and Finish are less convincing but sufficiently characteristic for the region they represent. And now for the big question. Where was this spirit distilled? I can't be sure of course but I would guess it's either Talisker from Skye or a peated Ledaig, distilled by Tobermory on Mull. It reminded me a bit of a peated Tamdhu as well but that's a Speysider of course. If anyone knows or would like to make an educated guess, please leave your thoughts in the Comments sector!
Jan van den Ende September 2013
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