Impression // Octomore 11.x series - Delicious Darkness
In my local dialect, there’s this expression to indicate the ‘center of winter’: “putteke winter”. In my mind, this time period can be found in between Christmas and the 6th of January. It symbolizes the darkest time of the year, and is often the coldest as well. The remedy for this? Well, something even darker, mysterious and rewarding. It’s the time of the Octomore…
Text by Mickaël Van Nieuwenhove
Photographs are © Bruichladdich
I’ve always been fascinated with Octomore ever since I attended my first tasting session in a bar in Aalst, owned by a dear friend of mine. Nick Baeyens’ laid-back approach to organizing a tasting, together with Bruichladdich’s brutally honest approach always results in a blend of information, fascination, and bewilderment. For some reason, getting information about almost every step of the whisky production process does not mean that the Octomore expressions are predictable. Far from it, even.
During the digital tasting session, led by Lynne McEwan and Nick Baeyens, another mystery presented itself: what is the science behind the ‘burning sensation’ (or ABV influence) on specific locations on the tongue and mouth lining? Apparently, the older the whisky, the further the ABV moves on the palate. Perhaps there’s a science behind it all. The mystery, for me, was that all Octomore 11.X expressions had different ‘ABV sensations’ on the palate, yet they are all the same age. Weird, huh?
In any case, that’s not a mystery I’m not going to be able to solve, gang, so I’m going to park that particular Mystery Machine on the driveway, and I’ll focus on my tasting notes for the 11.X series from now on. Hope you enjoy reading them!
Octomore 11.1 (61.7% ABV)
The first expression we were offered was the 11.1 expression, a 5 year old single malt whisky, limited to 30,000 bottles. Malting was brought to 139.6 PPM, and the distillate was matured for a full 5 years on first fill American whiskey casks (Jim Beam, Heaven Hill, Jack Daniels).
Whenever I sip Octomore, I just let the liquid roll over me. There’s no point trying to analyze it step by step, picking apart every little note that comes to mind. Instead, I just ‘go for it’ and write down what comes to mind after nosing, the first sip, and the full experience once the whisky and I have gotten acquainted.
With this expression, I first noticed a sharpish scent that reminded me of salty bacon or even ‘filet d’ Ardenne. It is definitely meaty, with notes of roasted (hazel)nuts in there as well. There’s a hint of spices in there too, besides the smoke, which is less pronounced than in other expressions.
That first sip offered up a smooth dram that is best described by throwing around the following adjectives: warm, velvety, rich, creamy, sweet. There’s brown sugar and exotic fruits, and my sensation could be best described by talking about a Kinder egg. The initial flavors are the shell, and the charcoal and peat are the present in the heart of the egg.
Once my palate got used to the whisky, I noticed that the peat moved forward a bit. It rolls out over the tongue, and it’s interesting how the ABV is not really noticeable to me until the finish, after which it settles nicely on the inside of my bottom lip. A lovely tingle to finish up.
Octomore 11.2 (58.6% ABV)
The second expression of the evening is a single malt blend (yes single malt is actually a blend too) of two parcels, in a 25/75 division. Parcel 1 was matured for 5 years on ex-European oak casks from the Pauillac region of France. Parcel 2 matured on ex-American oak casks, and was then poured into casks from the French region of St Julien. Both parcels were ‘married’ for the final couple of months, and the resulting 18,000 bottles really show off that French wines and peated malts go fantastically well together. The 11.2 expression has the same PPM (139.6) and age as the 11.1 expression, but the difference obviously lies with the different cask influences
That difference is present from the start. The scents are less sweet, and drier, although there’s still that ‘meaty’ vibe, albeit more salty. At the center of it all, a fruitier note, berry-like in nature. The exotic fruits are less present here, and the same goes for the brown sugar note.
The same tendency is continued on the palate. Compared to the 11.1, this is drier, like a proper cider, with even a bitter side to it all. Imagine that type of structure on your tongue. This expression is more robust in flavor, which crystalizes nicely on the tongue. There’s just a little smoke in there, more like a 'base coating’. At the end, a more creamy note, and even a bit of grape seed. The smoke finally moves to the roof of the mouth, and lingers there.
Octomore 11.3 (61.7% ABV)
The third expression in the 11.X trilogy has a higher PPM than the previous two (194 versus 139.6), but it has the same age. Again, a very straightforward ‘recipe’: full 5 year long maturation on first fill American whiskey casks (Jim Beam, Heaven Hill, Buffalo Trace, and Jack Daniels). The volume is the same as 11.2, namely 18,000 bottles.
The scents are less pronounced here, there’s a fresh gust of wing blowing through the dram. The cured meaty note is still there, but it’s like eating BBQ in a windy place. Speaking of BBQ, the cured meat note eventually moved towards a ready-made BBQ sauce for me, with some green herbs in there too. There’s some ‘funk’, according to Nick, and I see what he means by it. Lastly, there’s even a bit of milk chocolate in there.
The flavor palate is thicker than the previous two expressions. It’s more syrupy, again I am thinking of BBQ sauce, this time in terms of texture. It’s almost like a paste. There’s definitely more honey in this too, with a pin of smoke right at the center, which then starts to spread out irregularly. As a finish, all of the notes dry out on the tongue, and the smoke moves to the front, as if it was waiting around to check if you’re still interested.
It’s interesting how all of the 11.X expressions tend to have the smoke almost right at the end of the palate, right before you topple over the edge. It almost feels like the peat ‘carries’ the other flavors through, and I think the strongest case of that can be made with the 11.2.
Bonus: Octomore 10 year old (54.3% ABV)
As a special treat, we were also able to enjoy a sample of the 10 year old Octomore expression, which is a combination of 77 casks in total - all from 2009 - and which was malted to 208 PPM. Maturation was done in a combination of virgin oak and first & second fill ex-American whiskey casks (Jim Beam, Heaven Hill, Buffalo Trace, and Jack Daniels), with the following division:
15 casks of 2009 Scottish barley distilled spirit; matured in first fill ex-American whiskey casks from 2009 to 2015 before being transferred into second fill ex-American whiskey casks
46 casks of 2009 Scottish barley distilled spirit, filled into first fill ex-American whiskey casks
16 casks of American and Virgin Oak matured single malt; 20% first fill Virgin Oak – aged for 8 years – combined with 80% first fill ex-American whiskey casks ACE’d in second fill Virgin Oak. This complex blend was transferred to second fill ex-American whiskey casks in 2018.
With a limitation of 12,000 bottles, this Octomore release might be a true treasure if you can get your hands on it. I believe that this expression might be the next step for the brand, and it might be their way to convince whisky aficionado’s who are normally not really fans of peated whisky. The 10 y/o is, perhaps, the most 'accessible' for those that haven't tasted Octomore before. Simply because of the slow build-up. It's not as 'in your face' as the other expressions.
Compared to the scents of the other expressions of the tasting, this expression almost seems muted, delicate, with more fruits added to the mix, together with the peat. The nose is refreshingly delicate, with notes of vanilla and brown sugar, as well as apple sauce, next to the regular exotic fruits and a little acidity.
The flavors on the palate start off slowly, with a liquid that is a bit less viscous than the other expressions. Once it has had some time to settle, it starts to build up its complexity by peeling away layer by layer. There’s a certain sweetness to it, like a bit of sugar water, a memory of maple syrup bacon, which moves more towards the nose. Right at the end, there’s some apple vinegar. The smoke is a backer, and plays on the defense here. It’s almost like an after-thought, really, reminding you that this is Octomore after all.
