Octomore 13 Series
Credit: CourtesyThe Octomore series from Islay distillery Bruichladdich is known for being among the most heavily peated whiskies in the world. This might sound like overkill, but the distillery manages to bring subtle flavor nuances into the mix. Yes, the whisky is assertive, strong, and smoky, but it’s no one trick pony. On the contrary, the Octomore range provides this already innovative distillery a chance to use a wide variety of cask types and maturation times to explore how the flavors are affected. 13.1 was aged for five years in American oak and then recasked into new oak barrels, and the peat level on the extreme side at 137.3 PPM. 13.2 was also matured for five years, but in Oloroso sherry butts instead of bourbon barrels and has the same super high PPM as 13.1. Finally, 13.3 is a single-farm expression, meaning it’s made from barley from one particular farm. It was matured in American and European oak, and has a slightly lower PPM of 129.3. Once again, Bruichladdich and head distiller Adam Hannett have shown how whisky can be intensely smoky yet still complex and engaging.
Laphroaig 25 Year Old Cask Strength
Credit: CourtesyLaphroaig is one of the best-known distilleries on Islay, the Scottish island famous for its peated whisky. There are many different expressions to choose from, and the core 10-year-old is a classic for a reason. The distillery is quite proud of its assertive and sometimes divisive flavors, with iodine and seaweed often at the top of the list of tasting notes. These are softened a bit and augmented by many others in the expensive but excellent 25-year-old cask-strength expression. This whisky spent its entire lifetime maturing in bourbon barrels, and the most recent edition was bottled at 53.4 percent. That’s strong but not overpowering, and the higher proof brings out even more of the whisky’s character. If this seems like too much of a splurge, you can always try the 10-year-old cask strength instead.
Ardbeg 19 Year Traigh Bhan Batch 4
Credit: CourtesyArdbeg is another truly excellent Islay distillery that focuses on heavily peated whisky. There are several new releases we could include here, including Fermutation and Hypernova, but we’re going to focus on Traigh Bhan Batch 4. This is the fourth release of the distillery’s 19-year-old whisky, which sits in that sweet spot of maturation that brings out tropical fruit notes to complement the lovely smoke and vanilla of the whisky. There are also dried fruit and spice flavors in the mix due to the higher proportion of sherry cask-matured whisky in the bottle. This is another single malt that will cost you a few hundred bucks, but is well worth the expenditure. By the way, if you’re really feeling flush, consider picking up a bottle of the 25-year-old expression–it’s one of the best peated whiskies you can find.
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Westland Peated Single Malt
Credit: CourtesyWestland is a Seattle distillery that is really a leader in the American single malt category. There are always interesting expressions coming out of this Pacific NW operation, including the beloved Garryana series. But if you’re looking for a smoky whiskey from the US, the peated expression is one you should try. This single malt, first released in 2014, has actually been discontinued and is no longer being produced although it is still available to purchase. The whiskey is actually made using more unpeated barley than peated (five different malts to be exact), but there’s just enough smoke in there to drive the point home after maturing for 36 months in a combination of casks. Fans of this whiskey who want more smoke from Westland are looking forward to the arrival of Solum. This whiskey, part of the Outpost Range, was made using peat from the Pacific Northwest and will be released this winter.
BenRiach Smoke Season
Credit: CourtesyBenRiach isn’t the most familiar distillery to whisky fans here in the US (although that is changing), but it is one of the most interesting ones. So many different styles of whisky are produced there and aged in virtually every type of cask you can think of. And though it’s located in Speyside, not normally known for smoky whisky, BenRiach does indeed have a few peated expressions of note. These include Smoke Season, of which the second edition was just released this past fall. This small-batch release is made from 100 percent peated malt and matured in bourbon barrels and virgin oak, with notes of sweet toffee and smoldering campfire on the palate. There are other peated whiskies to try from BenRiach as well, but this is a great introduction.
Teeling Blackpitts
Credit: CourtesyWhen you think of smoky whiskey, you’re probably not thinking about Irish whiskey, but historically there have been some peated expressions from the Emerald Isle. Dublin distillery Teeling resurrected this relatively uncommon method of making whisky in Ireland with Blackpitts. According to the distillery, the triple distillation process makes the smoke go down easier on the palate of this single malt, although maturation likely has something to do with this as well–the whiskey is aged in bourbon and Sauternes white wine casks, much like the 24-year-old expression. If the only Irish whiskey you’ve been drinking is Jameson, that’s completely and totally fine. But consider giving this peated expression a try to see how it compares.
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Lagavulin Offerman Edition: Charred Oak Cask 11 Year
Credit: CourtesyAnother Islay favorite, Lagavulin has introduced several new expressions over the past few years. These include a 9-year-old Game of Thrones tie-in named after the House Lannister, a travel retail exclusive 10-year-old, and a couple of collaborations with actor Nick Offerman called Offerman Edition. Well, that celebrity collab is back with the new Charred Oak Cask, a single malt aged for 11 years that is the third whisky with an illustration of Offerman on the label. This is a single malt that was designed to be paired with steak, so put away the red wine for a bit and try this instead. It’s entirely matured in heavily charred casks, as opposed to a finish, so in addition to the smokiness from the peat there’s some that creeps through from the barrel type as well.
Bowmore 15 Year
Credit: CourtesyThere are a lot of really, really expensive ultra-aged single malts from Bowmore, a distillery located on–you guessed it–the Scottish island of Islay. The most recent example is the ARC-52 collaboration with Aston Martin, a $75,000 whisky aged for more than half a century and bottled in the most futuristic decanter you’ve ever seen (Google it to see what we mean). But really, you can’t go wrong with a bottle of Bowmore 15, a lovely peated whisky that falls squarely between the 12 and 18-year-olds in terms of price and flavor. It’s aged initially in bourbon barrels, then put into sherry casks, and the result is a smoky but not overpowering whisky that you can sip or even make a cocktail with if you’re feeling fancy.
Compass Box The Peat Monster
Credit: CourtesyCompass Box has been in the business of sourcing and blending scotch for more than 20 years now, and the whisky world is better off for it. One standout on the peated side of the flavor profile is appropriately called The Peat Monster, a blend of whisky from Caol Ila and Laphroaig with just a splash from an unnamed Highlands distillery thrown in as well. The brand’s “whiskymakers” (the preferred title of the Compass Box team) are continuing to hunt down and even mature their own whisky from various distilleries to go into their already impressive core range and limited releases. Speaking of which, Flaming Heart 2022 came out this fall, with just under 10,000 bottles of this blend of whisky from the aforementioned Laphroaig and Caol Ila, along with some from Talisker on the Isle of Skye (another distillery making excellent peated whisky).
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Highland Park 18 Year Old Single Malt Scotch Whisky
Viking imagery and themes are abundant at this Orkney Islands distillery located in the far, rugged, northern region of Scotland. So much so that this 18-year-old single malt is called “Viking Pride.” While we can’t confirm whether or not those helmeted warriors would have been proud of this whisky or not, it’s a gem of a bottle. The liquid is matured mostly in first-fill sherry-seasoned casks, according to the distillery, which really allows the smoky notes to pop against a backdrop of raisin, fig, citrus, and vanilla. This is another peated whisky that has softer tendrils of smoke than some of its siblings, but that’s why it’s so good. Also of note–Highland Park does not add color to its whisky, so that lovely golden hue is entirely from the cask.
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