The heart of the Bowmore range, the 12 year old exhibits some beautiful coastal notes with a gentle peat, it is the balance that the floral element presents that makes this a great entry bottling for Bowmore.
Coastal smoke and ash soon make way for bergamot, orange zest, lemon slices and some hay before becoming rather floral, heather smoke now competing with the ash.
Lovely and rounded, honeyed even, initially. Vanilla, perfumed smoke and coastal elements develop. Dark Peat. Blossom, oily sweetness.
Smoky and long. Sea spray, dry grass, a touch of ash and citrus.
Classic stuff and the heart of the Bowmore range. Smoky, fruity, coastal, delicious.
This is one of the best smokies I've tried in it's price range. It's complex in how the flavours unfold and release on the palette... smooth (amber) followed by sweet heather honey complimented by a slight citrus zing then a peaty smokiness that doesn't steal form the prior. The key though is how wonderfully balanced all the notes work together. The overall tone feels deep and complex, just an absolute magical pleasure to drink. I must admit, I have bias to the notes in this one which is in partly why I love it so much, but the overall balanced and complex nature to which it delivers to the palette really brings it home as an absolute winner for me. Really is a love and for any whisky drinker who loves a smoky where the smoke doest steal the show but works in balanced accompaniment with the rest of the notes, it's must try!
I've drank Bowmore 12 over the course of the last 18 years. Back in the days when Jim McEwan was in charge, (releases from 12 years and over) it was different, more salty, briny, pungent (and it was also different before him). I've had amazing Bowmore 12, 15, 18, I've had pretty normal ones. Then, tonight, I went to the liquor store to buy a bourbon and left with a Bowmore 12, which was on sale. Tell me about incentives. I thought "Oh well, it's going to be ok." But no, I was simply amazed by the highest quality of this batch: dark honey, citrus notes, long with lingering peat smoke, ash, heather, oak, sea salt, leather after-taste, I was like "Wow, WTF did happen with this new batch?" Then I went to read a few comments here to see if there would be such delights recently online, but no. When you read through the comments, some say it's great, some say it's disappointing. I think it's the problem with the "whole" whisky industry: drinkers are not educated to learn batches differ (sometimes greatly) from one another. This is not beer, vodka or gin, this is whisky. No two barrels are alike, the climate changes from year to year, the position of the barrel in the warehouse will influence the taste of whisky, etc. Bottomline: You can't replicate the same exact taste over and over again. Impossible. Yet, we live in a marketing world where folks believe they will get the exact same tasting profile from bottling of different years. This is insanity, ignorance. Look at older pre-1990's Macallan's, long, luxurious, then 2000's were more disappointing, then today they've dropped altogether the age statement and surf on the brand's reputation and they are tripling production. Think whisky taste the same year over year? Think again, you might fall on a stellar batch, like you might fall on a disappointing batch. Like wine or anything vintage, give it a try year over year, you never know. Stuff gets better, stuff gets worse. Unfortunately, we live in the dark ages when it comes to whisky, I don't know which batch of Bowmore 12 I'm drinking tonight, but it's downright amazing, better than the ones I've had last year or before. Eddie MacAffer, current master distiller, is retiring soon (after over 30 years working at the distillery) and expect more change in the taste of Bowmore in the years to come, like any other whisky brands. In the end, tonight, right here, right now, regardless of the low price I've paid, the complexity and balance found here is phenomenal.
I didn't give a rating because this is my first experience with an Islay. I'm more of a Bourbon fan but I do enjoy single malts...typically those that are finished. I read quite a few posts about which Islay to try first so I wouldn't be consumed by smoke. I'd have to say that this was a great starting point. The smoke/ash is there but it's definitely not overpowering and once I got used to it, I was able to grab some citrus notes. Palate was quite similar to the nose...citrus with a salty smoked ham note. The finish was warm and nice and long. I'm intrigued and will continue to taste this whisky.
Newer releases are losing the cloying speyside garishness that spoiled them for the past six or so years. They seem to be harkening back to Bowmores old glory somewhat. More smoke and more complexity is what this OB needs,along with three percent more umph. 40 percent makes it a bit flat and simple if you ask me.
My girlfriend bought me a bottle of Glenfiddich and a bottle of Bowmore 12 for Christmas. At first, I thought smoky whiskies weren't my thing, but I was wrong! Although I do not know much about whisky yet, I must say that the Bowmore 12 is the best whisky I have ever drank. I love the sweet and smoky side of this whisky. I can't wait to be done drinking my bottle of Glenfiddich 12 to concentrate a bit more on the Bowmore!
