I am a lazy slob.

So, that’s out there. Now you know. I am lucky enough to sometimes receive some trade samples for reviewing purposes, but my organizational skills are so poor that they become mixed up with all other samples. The result is often that I don’t review them in a timely matter or completely forget about them.

This happens to be one of them. What also didn’t help is that I’ve not been drinking much peated whisky over the last couple of months. Somehow I’m just not in the mood for it when I’m at home.

But, last Tuesday I decided it was high time to get some samples reviewed and out of the way. I’ve been picking the 3cl ones first, since I can finish them in one go without ending up with lots and lots of half emptied samples clogging the shelves. Any excuse, right?

This whisky was released somewhere in September or so last year, and Billy A. was kind enough to bring me a sample of it at Maltstock. He also brought the unpeated version, which I thought was awesome. Let’s see how the more popular peated one holds up.

Sniff:
Fairly strong smokiness on the nose, with lots of barley as well. A bit Ardbeg like, and by that I mean a very crisp and clean smokiness. Grass and some daffodils. In the background I’m getting some scents of sizzling bacon and maybe some hints of coffee. Quite sharp, but that’s not all that surprising.

Sip:
The first thing I get, even before the smokiness, is straw. The brittle kind, that gets dusty and smells like grains as well. So lots of barley, followed by that clean smokiness I got on the nose too. Some oak, and I’m not getting the bacon I found before. A bit sharp, but the sharpness is not very defined. White pepper like.

Swallow:
The finish might be even more sharp than the finish. The smoke is present too and it’s a bit sweeter than before. Didn’t expect that, and it’s going to sponge cake instead of fruit or anything else. Fairly long, but also quite simple.

I know a lot of people really loved this whisky when it came out. I think most people liked it more than the non-peated version that was also available (which I really loved). I still think the unpeated one is my favorite. This is a very good whisky, though. If you like the somewhat more gentle Ardbegs with the barley and straw forward flavors and things not being all about the smoke, this is a great buy, at a decent price.

I like the simplicity of the dram. There’s not much going on in the way of layeredness or depth of flavor. But, sometimes that is what you want. This one does barley, straw and smoke. And it does it tremendously well. Recommended stuff, this!

86/100

English Whisky Company, Peated, 55.2%, OB for The Whisky Exchange, still available for £ 62

Thanks to The Whisky Exchange for giving me a sample, sorry for the delay!