Follow Us:

Blog

KWM 2022 Whisky Calendar Day 5: Big Peat Blended Malt Scotch

Posted on December 5, 2022

BONUS CONTENT: Read Andrew's write-up on two Springbank KWM Casks here! Yes, there was a time when we could get single casks of Springbank. Can you believe it?!?

by Evan

Yesterday marked our first entry from an independent bottler with single malt from Teaninich Distillery as bottled by That Boutique-y Whisky Company. Today, with door number Five, we are seeing another independent bottling, but this time from a company that focuses on blends. This is the Big Peat Islay Blended Malt from bottler Douglas Laing.

The Big Peat brand first hit store shelves in 2009. It was the first release from Douglas Laing in what eventually became known as its Remarkable Regional Malts selections. These blended malts each showcase a different whisky region of Scotland.

For the Lowlands, you have The Epicurian, which features a fancy lad who might just be the unlikely offspring of Rich Uncle Pennybags from the Monopoly board game, Leonardo DiCaprio's character from The Great Gatsby, plus Fred Laing Jr and his carefully managed mustache itself..

The Speyside region is represented by The Sweet Wee Scallywag, whom our Fearless Leader’s own dog might just be modelled after.

The Highland Blended Malt is named Timorous Beastie and features a mouse on the label. This rodent is and the moniker are a reference to the Robert Burns poem “To a Mouse”.

The Gauldrons is a Campbeltown Blended Malt. The Gauldrons is a location about a 15-minute drive west of Campbeltown itself; on the opposite side of the Kintyre Peninsula. The name translates to “Bay of Storms”. Also: apparently you can surf there.

There is also the Rock Island Blended Malt, which is made with single malts from the distilleries which reside on the Orkney and Hebridean Isles, including Jura, Arran, Islay, and the Orkney Mainland.

The Big Peat itself, of course, focuses on just on a single island: the one and only Islay. Because it is focused on the distilleries of Islay, it tends to be composed of the big peated malts that the region is known more. Hence the name Big Peat, and why the character on the label is squinting with his head pushed forward against the harsh coastal wind.

Part of what makes Big Peat an interesting Blended Malt to talk about and taste is pretty much every iteration and batch that has been made in this whisky’s existence has contained at least a small amount of Port Ellen in the mix.

What makes the name Port Ellen such a big deal? Well, currently - as in as I write this – there is no Port Ellen Distillery in operation. In fact, the distillery has been closed for just under 40 years now, since 1983. Port Ellen has only existed as a Maltings Plant that supplies much of the peated malt used by other Islay distilleries for the past four decades. That is all soon to change, as a new still house is being built with the hopes of production starting in 2023.

You can see some drone video footage and photos of the facility going up here: https://www.facebook.com/portellendistillery/

What that means in terms of the Big Peat Blended Islay Malt is that there is (likely very tiny) some amount of near or older than 40-year-old legendary Islay single malt blended into each bottle. This is something that possibly only Douglas Laing; independent bottler and maker of Big Peat – could manage to do. For many years it has been said that Douglas Laing held more ageing Port Ellen casks in their warehouses than any other entity, including Diageo, the company that owns Port Ellen to this day.

So: will this Big Peat live up to the names of the fabled Port Ellen and the other Islay distilleries that go into creating it? Let’s give it a go and find out!

Big Peat Blended Malt Scotch – 46%

Also available in full-sized bottles - and a cask strength Christmas Edition

This Islay Blended Malt is composed of the whisky from Islay powerhouses Caol Ila, Bowmore, and Ardbeg. Oh yeah, and some distillery named Port Ellen.

Evan’s Tasting Note

Nose: Peat. No shock there, right? Cooking sausages on a barbecue, a salty brine full of fresh shellfish and white flowers, plus notes of pear slices, apple juice, black peppercorns, and a newly twined bale of hay.

Palate: Smoky lime juice – almost mezcal-like on entry. Pickled ginger, slightly bitter seaweed, sour beer, seafood fried in a salt and pepper batter, chili pepper flakes and a touch of sweet Riesling wine to wash it all down.

Finish: Salty and slightly tart with a chalky smokiness.

Comment: This is a multifaceted dram with plenty of youthful notes on both the fresh and funky side of things. Plus, a touch of underlying depth.

There you have it. The Big Peat represents the, uh, first big peat in our 2022 KWM Whisky Calendar. Given that we are only on Day Five it is a sure bet we will see more peated whisky as we make our way through all the doors still to be opened. What will tomorrow bring? See you on Day Six!

Cheers,
Evan
evan@kensingtonwinemarket.com
Twitter and Instagram: @sagelikefool

 

This entry was posted in Whisky, Whisky Calendars, Independent Bottler, KWM Whisky Calendar 2022

 

 

Recent Posts
Archives

Categories