Kilchoman Machir Bay

Pretty easy to knit. Young, aggressive peat hammer with in the case neat sweetness (+) and still too much metal (-). If you want that - great. But so far, for example, I found all the "Classic of Islay" that I tried more interesting.

Tasted at Story Tellers: Tasting Whisky in January 2018

First of all, the full load of peat smoke is evident in this young malt, only to reveal a few more beautiful facets on closer inspection. Here, a very good distillate has undergone intensive, albeit short, maturation. If you like the normal ''Mahir Bay'', you will love this strong version.

Nose: Strong dry smoke, followed by white grapes. The smoke stabilizes while remaining dominant. Vanilla straw appears. Palate: Alcohol perfectly controlled, it is sweet on the palate, without aggressiveness. A lot of vanilla, a little lemon juice. The peat is finally quite discreet in the mouth. Final: Quite short. Smoked vanilla, white grapes. A slight astringency of citrus zest. Verdict: My tastes have certainly changed for a year, but I find it less interesting than last year. He is not bad, he lets himself drink freely.

Grain is ever-present on the nose and palate, reflecting the youth of the whisky, alongside Kilchoman’s signature ashy peat. Bourbon vanilla briefly emerges but is quickly overtaken by wood tannins and the astringency of over-brewed tea. The finish intensifies with a hit of sharp ginger, heightening the already unpleasant woody bitterness. An unbalanced dram—far too bitter for my taste.

still a bit reserved in the nose, but in the mouth a really typical Bourbon cask Kilchoman, the Machir Bay suits the cask strength well

https://kaypingers-whiskyblog.de/frontend/fullarticle.php?id=345 Colour: White wine - sunlight Nose: Very smoky and with a lot of dull cardboard-character. Soft lemon extract, lime and sweet accents of yellow, ripe apples. In addition wet coal, ashes, peat and maritime sea air. Taste: Sweetish, slightly sour and at the same time with a lot of sugar sweet peat. Add lime, salt, bergamot, wet charcoal, some honey, but unfortunately the sweetness is mostly based on sugar. Finish: Medium long - now tart and peatier, tenderly woody and with a dull and wet character. The fruit is strongly suppressed. A dry tartness of wood and peat determines the finish. 85 points N: 87P / G: 85P / F: 84P

**Sweet vs Salt vs Sour** I’ve had this bottle in my cabinet for years. I bought two when the Wills brothers of Kilchoman toured Europe with the 4x4 to celebrate the 10th Anniversary of the distillery back in 2015. For that occasion 1500 bottles of Machir Bay at cask strength were released. My first bottle did not survive long, but the second one I opened only in May 2020 for the second edition of WhisQy (Whisky in Quarantine), my virtual tastings via online stream. Contrary to today’s version of Machir Bay, this is a vatting of bourbon barrels only. It was the opener of the evening, go figure. Powerful, smoky nose on cardboard (not an off-note), lime, lemon and charcoal. Sea breeze and ashes, overripe Jonagold apples and smoked ham. I love it. Surprisingly creamy body, smoky and peaty from the first sip, yet with a lovely undertone of sweet versus salty versus sour. Lots of vanilla and sugar, citrus fruit (bergamot and grapefruit) and brackish water (and quite a bit indeed). Clearly young, but with a good balance. Powerful too. Liquorice and white pepper with a slightly bitter note of the wood. The finish is wonderfully long, starts sweet but then dies a wonderful peaty death. For me, this is Kilchoman pur sang. Excellent whisky.

Wow I simply love Kilchoman. This dram is another masterpiece of this distillery and I am happy that they have only started their business ;-) So much good stuff to come.

A very interesting, powerful, still young malt - limited for the European Tour 2015; [Color gold;

Tasted on 02-22-2021.

Overall, he gets 84 points from me, the nose and the finish are great, the taste is a bit too metallic. Alcohol already fits. He is exceptionally strong, but I can not determine burning. So in terms of alcohol, the piglet has burned more, but the Kilchoman has three times more fire in terms of warming and such. But we all want that, right? Notes from an online chat tasting