Smokehead
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Distiller:
Undisclosed
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Bottler:
Smokehead
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ABV:
43%
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Age:
NAS
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Price:
$$$$$
Smokehead delivers on their promise, bringing an intense bouquet of smoke, honey, praline, lemon and ashy brine on the nose. Sweet, smoky palate serves up acrid smoke, sweet cream, honey and a briny minerality that carries through a short finish. Excellent value, and a good way to invite the cold season into your home.
- Raided Score: 85
- Publication: whiskyfun
- Excerpt: A totally flawless young peat monster, highly drinkable but probably not meant for 'tasting.'
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- Raided Score: 87
- Publication: WhiskyCast
- Excerpt: The nose on this no-age-statement Islay single malt is peaty with notes of brine and seaweed, along with heather and dried grass.
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- Raided Score: 82
- Publication: Whiskey Raiders
- Excerpt: Overall, this is performing well for what it is and what it costs.
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- Raided Score: 69
- Publication: Distiller
- Excerpt: Those heavy aromas are all talk and no action. They collapse on themselves when you take a sip.
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- Raided Score: 82
- Publication: Malt-Review
- Excerpt: Perfectly drinkable and agreeable, it is a warmup act for the more domineering Islay malts.
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- Raided Score: 82
- Publication: Whisky Advocate
- Excerpt: Brisk and warming. Okay, this is a young, “in your face” Islay single malt. Young Islay whiskies show the true character of Islay.
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Synopsis:
Smokehead delivers on their promise, bringing an intense bouquet of smoke, honey, praline, lemon and ashy brine on the nose. Sweet, smoky palate serves up acrid smoke, sweet cream, honey and a briny minerality that carries through a short finish. Excellent value, and a good way to invite the cold season into your home.
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Intro:
Smokehead is an interesting entry to the Scotch market. Marketed as a peat bomb select for the "Smokeheads" of the market who simply can't get enough peat, this whiskey is more than satisfied in being a polarizing outlier to other, more pedestrian, bottlings. We're not told who distilled it, but we're told it'll be smoky. I think that sets the stage properly, so let's get into this one. The seasons are changing here in Wisconsin with warm middays but cold and crisp evenings, and that's about when I find myself craving peat, so this bottling is officially in season for me. Let's dive in.
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Nose:
Whew, smoky indeed. Praline, toffee, a strong brine hit. Moss, honey, satisfying pepper component. Pretty complex, with an unexpected sweetness to the nose that fares well with the peat.
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Taste:
Sweet cream initially, some honey, toffee and acrid peppery smoke. A hint of plastic, minerality, and ethanol.
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Finish:
Short finish, though satisfying with ethanol, chocolate, ash and some honey.
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Overall:
The nose is the best part of this release for me -super complex, though the palate and finish were just good. I'll comment that I think more proof here would do great things. I have the Sherry Bomb and High Voltage review coming up as well, so hopefully that 58 percent solves my critique of this bottling. Overall, this is performing well for what it is and what it costs, at least here. Pairs nicely with some fire pit and a crisp fall evening after dinner.
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Score:
5
- Our in house critic rates spirits on a scale of 0-10 (10 best) and is aggregated the same as external sources
