Islay Storm Review


"Islay Breeze"
Country: Scotland 
Region: Islay
Brand: Islay Storm
Type: Single Malt Whisky
Age: NAS (At Least 6 Years)
ABV: 40 %
Date: 04/03/2014

Colour: Golden (Contains Colouring Agent)

Nose: Young and Mineral with Sweet Coastal Peat, Tar, Brine, Ashes, light Iodine, Raw Meat, Shell Fish, light Rubber, Lemon-Peel, light Honey, Toffee, Malt, Candies with Artificial Banana Flavour and hints of Vanilla and Menthol. It's very much a straightforward young Islay. 

Palate: Slightly Watery and Sweet with Peat, Smoke, Iodine, Menthol, Salt, light Plastic, light Custard, light Honey, Toffee, Lemon Peel, light Wood and light Spices like Pepper and Nutmeg. 

Finish: Short and Sweet with a little Wood, Smoke, Ashes, light Pepper and light Plastic.

I would not advise to add Water to the Islay Storm. It becomes too Thin.

Rating: 81.5

Nose: 21 - Taste: 20 - Finish: 20  - Overall: 20.5


General Remarks: Another Mystery from Islay! This time it's a Single Malt, matured on Ex-Bourbon Casks. Nobody knows for sure where it was distilled. The bottle indicates Bruichladdich while the label reminds me of Bowmore. Too obvious to be true so I will rule out those two distilleries. Kilchoman is too recent to be considered. The Iodine on the Nose is not very strong so it's unlikely to be Laphroaig. That leaves basically Lagavulin, Bunnahabhain and Caol Isla. Based on my earlier Tasting Notes of these distilleries I don't think Lagavulin is a very likely candidate. So that leaves either Bunnahabhain or Caol Isla. My guess is as good as yours! If you happen to know the distillery please leave a note in the Comment Section. Islay Storm is not expensive at around 40 US Dollars.

Drinking Experience Neat: Okay/Good

Conclusion: On the Nose the Islay Storm is a good example of a young Islay, pointing in the direction of Caol Ila. But the Thin Palate does not possess the necessary Power and Flavours that give Great Islay Malts their well deserved worldwide fame. For sure, this Single Malt is pleasantly priced but in my opinion " Islay Breeze" would have been a better name!

Jan van den Ende                                                             March 2014

2 comments:

Unknown said...

Bowemore ;-)

Jan van den Ende said...

Thanks for commenting Rob, Bowmore was also confirmed by Robert Hoekstra. I wouldn't have thought that despite the " Bowmore" label! I didn't catch the Bowmore "Tea" on the Palate. Well, better luck next time! Cheers!
Jan