TAIBHSE 5yo Highland (Peated) (Virgin Oak Octave) 1 of 74 btls 60% abv 700ml

Taibhse – Highland Peated

5 year old; Cask Strength at 60.0% abv

75 Bottles finished in a Virgin Oak Octave Cask

Distilled February 2018 in a hogshead cask then finished for 5 months in a Virgin Oak Octave

Bottled October 2023

Tasting Notes by Ewan McIlwraith

My reason for using a virgin oak octave for this particular whisky was to add complexity and offer wider maturation influences on, what is a relatively young whisky. Being a peated Highland whisky, there is a tightrope to be walked between the oaky vanilla of the octave and the mysterious suggestion of peat. I’ve been careful not to allow over-maturation in the octave as Virgin Oak can overwhelm the wonderful, gently peated spirit inside.

I think this has worked. Oak and vanilla greet you first as you approach the glass. Then the suggestion of something unusual as the peat influence lifts itself up to the rim. Have a taste and the gentle peat smoke encircles you as the vanilla, and fresh oak form the base. This whisky isn’t complicated. The combination of peat smoke, bourbon influences and fresh oak are delightful, and you can relax in your favourite chair, with this balanced carefully on the arm. It is soft, subtle, yet unquestionably peated with a gentle spice which leaves your tongue tingling and wanting for more.

Available to pre-order.