“When Speyside Meets Skye”
Whisky Review # 686
Country: Scotland
Region: Highlands - Islands - Skye
Brand: Talisker Distillers Edition 2000
Type: Single Malt Whisky
Age: 11 Years (Bottled in 2011)
Age: 11 Years (Bottled in 2011)
Alcohol By Volume (ABV): 45.8%
Maturation: Bourbons casks with Oloroso Finish.
Chill Filtration: Yes
Price Range: US$ 180-250 (February 2018).
Buying Advice: 😐 Neutral. Good Malt but quite expensive right now.
Maturation: Bourbons casks with Oloroso Finish.
Chill Filtration: Yes
Price Range: US$ 180-250 (February 2018).
Buying Advice: 😐 Neutral. Good Malt but quite expensive right now.
Colour: Chestnut/Dark Amber (Artificially Coloured)
Nose: I was expecting a Talisker 10 with a bit of Sherry influence but that's not the case. My first impression is a bag of mixed Sweet Dried Fruit. They are all there, the Raisins, Sultanas, Apricots, Apples, Figs and Prunes. The Sherry casks must have been quite active. I also find Salted Caramel, Barley Sugar, Toffee, Brown Sugar, Sugared Almonds, Orange Marmalade and Vanilla. It is a Talisker of course so I also find Bonfire Smoke, Wet Earth, Wet Rocks, Ashes, Dusty Old Books, Iodine, Diesel and Soot. But all these notes are muted unlike in the 10 years. On the Nose, this DE is quite Sweet but there are a few slightly Sour Red Wine notes as well. If you take your time you might also find traces of Leather, Licorice, Aniseed, Cinnamon, (Lemon) Pepper, Mint, Coffee Beans (Not Roasted), Olive Oil, Floral Soap and Tobacco. The Alcohol is not fully integrated. There's a lot to discover on the Nose of this Talisker if you take your time. But somehow I feel that the Amoroso casks might have absorbed a bit too much of the original Talisker distillery character. It would be interesting to see how this Single Malt would smell and taste after a reduced Sherry Finish of say six months.
Palate: The delivery is good thanks to the adequate ABV. On the Palate and in the Finish I find more balance between the Distillery character and the Sherry. On the Palate this Talisker is mainly Bitter-Sweet with a few slightly Sour Red Wine notes as well. I find Sweet Malted Barley, Salted Caramel, Vanilla, Toffee, Orange Marmalade, Dried Fruits and Nuts like Raisins, Sultanas, Plums, Apples and Almonds, Lemon, light Campfire Smoke, Earthy Peat, Ashes, Iodine, Soot, Charred Oak, Leather, Herbal Tea, Clove, Pepper, Cinnamon, Licorice and hints of Cherry-Flavoured Cough Syrup, Espresso and Mustard Seeds.
Finish: Middle-Long and Bitter-Sweet with a nice Jalapeno blast towards the Dry end. I also find Sweet Malted Barley, Toffee, Vanilla, Salted Caramel, Apple-Raisin Pie, light Campfire Smoke, Sweet Earthy Peat, Ashes, Soot, Salted Fish, Diesel, Dark Chocolate and Bacon. Some Citrus, Charred Oak, Leather, Menthol, Cinnamon, Aniseed, Dried Herbs and Licorice. Hints of Espresso and Cherry-Flavoured Cough Syrup.
Drinking Advice:
I added a little Water and on the Nose you get something like Burnt Oranges. Both Palate and Finish accept a few drops if you like. Don't overdo it as you will get a little Plastic on the Finish. As usual, I prefer to sip it neat.
Visit May 2017
Palate: The delivery is good thanks to the adequate ABV. On the Palate and in the Finish I find more balance between the Distillery character and the Sherry. On the Palate this Talisker is mainly Bitter-Sweet with a few slightly Sour Red Wine notes as well. I find Sweet Malted Barley, Salted Caramel, Vanilla, Toffee, Orange Marmalade, Dried Fruits and Nuts like Raisins, Sultanas, Plums, Apples and Almonds, Lemon, light Campfire Smoke, Earthy Peat, Ashes, Iodine, Soot, Charred Oak, Leather, Herbal Tea, Clove, Pepper, Cinnamon, Licorice and hints of Cherry-Flavoured Cough Syrup, Espresso and Mustard Seeds.
Finish: Middle-Long and Bitter-Sweet with a nice Jalapeno blast towards the Dry end. I also find Sweet Malted Barley, Toffee, Vanilla, Salted Caramel, Apple-Raisin Pie, light Campfire Smoke, Sweet Earthy Peat, Ashes, Soot, Salted Fish, Diesel, Dark Chocolate and Bacon. Some Citrus, Charred Oak, Leather, Menthol, Cinnamon, Aniseed, Dried Herbs and Licorice. Hints of Espresso and Cherry-Flavoured Cough Syrup.
Drinking Advice:
I added a little Water and on the Nose you get something like Burnt Oranges. Both Palate and Finish accept a few drops if you like. Don't overdo it as you will get a little Plastic on the Finish. As usual, I prefer to sip it neat.
Rating: 85.5
Nose: 21.5 - Taste: 21 - Finish: 21.5 - Overall: 21.5
General Remarks:
General Remarks:
🏣 The Distillery and Today's Whisky:
The distillery is located in Carbost on the Isle of Skye and was founded in 1830. The current owners are Diageo. Despite the remote location, Talisker receives lots of visitors and the Shop and VC were recently refurnished. We visited the distillery in May this year and it was crowded! We didn't like the Tour a lot. You are not allowed to take pictures and mill and casks can only be seen behind glass. You can't get very close to the stills as well. It was nice to have a close look at the wooden worm tubs outside. The subsequent Tasting was really nice though and we spend almost an hour in a separate room tasting six different Taliskers. If you're on Skye you should certainly pay Talisker a visit.
This Distillers Edition was produced in 2000 and bottled in 2011.
🍷 The Spirit:
Tasting during Visit May 2017
🍷 The Spirit:
Talisker operates two wash stills and three spirit stills. The Lyne arms of the wash stills make a peculiar U bend that increases the contact of the spirit with the copper. The fermentation time is long. The stills produce a lightly peated full-bodied Spicy and Peppery Whisky. The Water is sourced from the Springs on Cnoc Nan Speirag just above the distillery.
The Spirit for this 2000 DE matured for 10 years in Bourbon casks before being finished for one year in Amoroso casks. Amoroso is a sweetened Oloroso Sherry.
Drinking Experience: Good
Conclusion: The Talisker DE 2000 is a good Single Malt. To me, the Sherry is a little too present on the Nose but many people might actually like that. On the Palate and in the Finish there's more balance between Sherry cask and Talisker character. I would never say no if someone would offer me a glass of the 2000 Talisker Distiller's Edition. On the other hand there's nothing that beats the 10 Years if you want Wild & Exciting and the 18 Years if you're into Silky pleasure. I would be totally happy if Talisker would only produce these two classics.
Visit May 2017
🌲 The Wood:The Spirit for this 2000 DE matured for 10 years in Bourbon casks before being finished for one year in Amoroso casks. Amoroso is a sweetened Oloroso Sherry.
Drinking Experience: Good
Conclusion: The Talisker DE 2000 is a good Single Malt. To me, the Sherry is a little too present on the Nose but many people might actually like that. On the Palate and in the Finish there's more balance between Sherry cask and Talisker character. I would never say no if someone would offer me a glass of the 2000 Talisker Distiller's Edition. On the other hand there's nothing that beats the 10 Years if you want Wild & Exciting and the 18 Years if you're into Silky pleasure. I would be totally happy if Talisker would only produce these two classics.
Jan van den Ende February 12, 2018
Visit May 2017
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