Kilchoman Saligo Bay

“Set Fire To The Rain” 

Whisky Review # 1031

Country: Scotland 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿

Region: Islay

Brand: Kilchoman Saligo Bay

Type: Single Malt Scotch Whisky

Age: NAS - (Stated at Around 5 Years)

Alcohol By Volume (ABV): 46%
Maturation: Ex-Bourbon barrels

Chill Filtration: No

Price Range: US$ 60-100 (August 2024)
Price/Quality Ratio: 👍 if you can get it at max. US$ 70
Buying Advice: 👍 if you like Young Smoky Islay Malt

Colour:

White Wine - Chardonnay (Natural Colour)

Nose:

Relatively Young and a little Rough with lots of Smoke and Burnt Peat. Quite Dry as well. Not Unpleasant! Give it enough time in the glass to be able to spot the other Aromas. There is a bit of Alcohol in play. All in all a typical Young Islay Malt.

Main Aromas:

Sweet Barley, Salted Caramel, Vanilla, slightly Burnt Buttered Toast, Wet Hay and Grass, Bonfire Smoke, Burnt Peat, Tar, Ashes, Charred Oak, Smoked Fish and Shellfish on the BBQ sprinkled with lots of Lemon and dusted with Green Herbs and Pepper.

Supportive Aroma Accents:

Heather-Honey, Toffee, Farm Yard, Dirty Earth, Iodine, Seaweed, Green Apple,  Cooked Vegetables, Tangerine, Grapefruit, Bitter Orange, Leather, Pipe Tobacco, Licorice, Mint and Plastic.

Palate:

Mainly Sweet with a few Sour and Bitter notes as well. Quite Dry. Oily but a little Thin at the same time. It can't hide its relative Youth but it remains pleasant.

Main Flavours:

Sweet Barley, Salted Caramel, Vanilla, Driftwood Fire, Tar, Ashes, Hay and Grass, Farm Yard, Butter, Fish and Shellfish on the BBQ sprinkled with lots of Lemon and dusted with Green Herbs and Pepper, Charred Oak and Mint.

Supportive Flavour Accents:
   
Heather-Honey, Toffee, Iodine, Seaweed, Green Apple, Ginger, Herbal Tea, Milk Chocolate, Sour Orange and Grapefruit, Rubber, Plastic, Licorice and Nutshells.

Finish:

Middle-Long. Young, a little Rough and mostly Sweet with a few light Bitter notes. The Sweetness presents itself a little Artificial. Quite Dry. I find Sweet Barley, Wet Hay and Grass, Salted Caramel, Vanilla, Driftwood Fire, Tar, Ashes, Farm Yard and Dirty Earth, Slightly Sour Green Apple, Lemon, Herbal Tea, Charred Oak, Strong Espresso, Plastic, Metal, Rubber, Pepper, Cinnamon, Ginger and Licorice. Hints of Milk Chocolate, Pipe Tobacco and Gasoline after a while.

Drinking Advice:

In an odd way added Water seems to enhance the Young character of this Saligo Bay. Be sure to try it out! I prefer it neat though.

Rating: 7.5 (*******1/2)

Nose: 7.5 - Taste: 8 - Finish: 7

*** Important Note with respect to Rating.

If the Final score is 8 or higher you can safely buy the whisky in question if and when it fits your Aroma/Flavor profile. If the score is between 6 and 8 you might want to try it out in the form of a sample or if offered at a good price. Anything below 6 should be left alone when you are looking for a nice sipping whisky. You might still like it of course & I realize pricing is an important item for many whisky fans especially when you are used to enjoy whisky in a cocktail or a mixed drink.

Drinking Experience Neat: Good

Conclusion:

The Kilchoman distillery is located at the Rockside farm, close to Bruichladdich. This farm distillery only started production in 2005. It is owned by Anthony Wills and his sons are involved in the day-to-day business as well. It's a  small distillery that currently produces around 600.000 litres per year. The core range consists of the NAS Machir Bay and the NAS Sanaig. Kilchoman has its own malting floor responsible for malting around 25% of their needs. The rest was bought from Port Ellen but since 2022 they only sell to Diageo distilleries. Therefore Kilchoman has ample plans to increase their own malting and distilling facilities.

The Saligo Bay was launched in 2016, initially for Travel Retail only. As of 2021 it is widely available elsewhere. Saligo Bay is one of the three beautiful bays on the West Coast of Islay.

The Saligo Bay is a typical Young Islay whisky that matured for around five years in good casks. There's a lot of Smoke and Burnt notes around and if you like that this Kilchoman will not disappoint you despite a few light off-notes. All in all not a bad effort by this relatively young distillery.

Cheers! 🥃

Jan van den Ende                                                                 September 5, 2024