Talisker 10 year old single malt is a classic Island whisky from the Isle of Skye. Aged for a minimum of 10 years in American oak casks, this welcome member of Diageo's Classic Malts series has been recognised numerous times for its excellence. Immensely satisfying stuff, with whiffs of warm peat blending with coastal air, balanced by orchard fruit and juicy barley. A spectacular after dinner dram.
It was an Editor's Choice at Whisky Magazine, a gold medal winner at the San Francisco World Spirits Competition 2017 and was awarded 'Best Islands Single Malt' at the 2017 World Whiskies Awards.
A fresh and fragrant nose. Through thick, pungent smoke comes sweet pear and apple peels, with pinches of maritime salt from kippers, seaweed.
It's a bonfire of peat crackling with black pepper, with a touch of brine and dry barley. A welcome delivery of orchard fruit provides a delicate and beautiful balance.
In a long finish, bonfire embers toast malt and crystallise a sugary underlay.
It smells amazing! But then you taste it, it's not a good whiskey
I just picked up a bottle of Talisker 10yo for $70 because I had never tried Talisker before. My flat opinion as a peat and bourbon lover.. this is a very very weak whiskey. It has a smooth smoky nose and a very pleasant malty arrival, but that's as far as it went for me. The development was very mild, and the finish was almost nonexistent! When I'm drinking an expensive peated whisky, I at LEAST want a nice long finish. If this was a $40 whisky, I would have very little to complain about. What I ended up doing with it was (yes this may make some of you cringe) blending it with some high end bourbon. 2/3rds Talisker 1/3rd high end bourbon. Now after blending it, THEN it actually became something very very good! The bourbon helped drag out the finish in the most amazing way! So the only reason this even gets 2 stars, it because (for me personally) it was somewhat saved by blending it.
In my opinion, it's a must have for your big three. No mather what happen, I like to keep a bottle of Talisker, Laphroaig QC and a Lagavulin 12. It tells you how I valued this scotch. Smoky, peated and heavy salt. The nose is just incredible. Close your eyes, take a whiff, and you can almost feel yourself sitting on the sideseas cliffs of Scotland with the waves crashing into the rock. However, I have found out it's not the best to match with a cigar, it completly messes with the palate. Have a more smoky oriented scotch like Bowmore or Ardbeg, or a heavy coal Laproaig for your week-end cigar. Have a good one.
Smoke overwhelmed everything. Experimented with adding more and more water a bit at a time to no avail. Nose: Smoke. Taste: Smoke. Finish: Ash tray with notes of death. I like a dram with a hint of smoke but I'm more for the light, fruity, floral whiskeys so if you're the same avoid this one. However, if a smoky whiskey is your thing I can highly recommend it because that is exactly what you will get.
Comes along confident and strong, but is already gone before you've really met. Just a bit too boisterous for my taste, I guess, but still nice enough for the odd occasion.
