Bowmore Small Batch is an elegant Islay single malt matured in both first-fill and second-fill bourbon barrels. A great introduction to Bowmore's lovely smoky flavour profile - the Small Batch is refined, light, and well-balanced with plenty of honey, coconut, and vanilla notes.
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Thin and one-dimensional. There is peat and fruit but it all feels very watered down. I'm glad I only bought a miniature!
Well priced single malt. Fruit on the palate, with a spicy finish. Ignore the NAS, and enjoy the taste of Islay.
It’s the nice one. You like Islay? Good price for the good stuff. Bowmore is always fantastic, except legend imo.
Very pleasantly surprised. Especially for the price. A nice gentle Islay with a fair bit of smoke . A bit of spice too. I definitely got the richness from the bourbon barrels . Very easy drinking drop.
I generally agree with avoiding NAS single malts, except when they appear to be priced fairly. Besides, this is the only Bowmore I could find in my area. It only cost $35, so I figured it's worth a try. It does not have the full face-melting blast of Laphroaig, Ardbeg or Lagavulin, but the peat is forward and not subdued like in Highland Park 12. And some of the malt character comes through, I can taste the bourbon influence. It's not awfully sweet and not terribly dry or astringent, but does have some oak spiciness. Great for when you want peat, but not able to deeply analyze it and so don't want to deplete your other Islays. For this purpose I also recommend Glen Moray Peated. It's a shame this Bowmore is at minimum legal strength, chill-filtered and with added colorant. And "small batch" means... precisely nothing. So I'm glad I tried it but not sure I'd buy again. Maybe if I find an age-stated expression.
