Oily, peppery and sweet coastal whisky.
Someone below mentioned afterburn, I beg to differ, it´s not afterburn – I would call it delicious pepperiness – lingering at your palate. This is a great whisky for the price, in my opinion far ahead other entry level Islays, including peat giants like Laphroaig and Ardbeg.
Solid body that takes water really well, well balanced. Every element of Islay is there, tar, ash, peat, brine, seaweed... also those elements usually connected to smoky and coastal whiskies of Islay, like Caol Ila, and especially Lagavulin: smoky disinfectant, floor wax , leather polish etc. In short, Moine combines in some odd ways peat monsters and smoky coastalness; Ardbeg and Lagavulin. Funny thing is that this is much, much better than any entry level Ardbeg, or any Lagavulin, that I´ve ever tasted... yes, it might sound surprising, but I must confess that I´m not a great admirer of Lagavulin.
This whisky has very peppery character, but nothing dominates too much. If you are after a delicious sherry bombs, then, this is not for you. There´s a lot of oily sweetness, but in a totally different context then in those fruity and trendy, heavily sherried whiskies. But if you are after oily, peppery, salty and sweet, well balanced coastal whisky, this is absolutely for you. I will give this five stars, because I´ve never tasted any coastal whisky better at the price.
Ahti V
, Finland
4 years ago