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.
A really enjoyable malt. And for the price, very good too. Nice and rich, peaty (though not in the Lagavulin league of peatiness). Warming yet exciting!
OK, here goes... As a big fan of peated, smoky scotch whisky, I find this to be an excellent dram AND excellent value. Bowmore 12 is a fantastic way to introduce those with a shy palate to peated single malt. Overall a smooth whisky with mild smoky peat flavour, its great neat and also really good with sofa or mixed into a Rusty Nail. For $48 at Superstore in Alberta, I would take this over a Glenfiddich 12 or Glenlivet 12 any day!
Pleasant and lively on the palate, 12 it is and given time it will be the ambrosia you asked for.
Very enjoyable and easy drinking. To me it feels like a bit of a cross between a sweeter Highland style and an Islay. Well balanced. Would be so much better bottled a few extra percent higher. But you know what I found is a nice trick: Throw a few drops of something massive like Ardbeg Uigeadail into your glass along with the Bowmore to make your own blend, you end up with something very complex yet super drinkable. Also, in China, where I am, this is available for around 20 quid sterling, not bad value at all, though admittedly for not much more you could get Laphroaig Quarter Cask, a more interesting malt, but also not as quaffable.
Well, it is not bad. a kind of fruity with some gentle peat but... Not great at all ! Drinkable obviously, will please your none whisky drinker friends. Just OK actually.
