Islay and Jerez – twinned!

An amazing nose brought us black bun, liquorice, rum-flambaed pineapple and oysters with lemon and tabasco-pepper sauce, plus quaint hints of engine fan belts. The palate tasted like chilli lemon prawns from a beach bonfire, dried seaweed, chewing tobacco and fernet. The reduced nose offered dark sweetness (cinder toffee, cinnamon toast and cough lozenges), diesel engines in the harbour and fishermenas oilskins drying in the sun. The palate combined sweet smoke (burnt newspaper, clinker ash, molasses and apple strudel) with coastal references (crab cakes and old lobster creels). This is a glorious twinning of Islay and Jerez; after seven years in ex-bourbon wood, this was transferred into a first fill American oak oloroso hogshead.