TASTING NOTES
NOSE: Somehow ashy meets rum & raisin ice-cream meets the aromas of hiking through a wet forest meets chocolate cake meets burning sticks and yet, even in concert, it’s all beguiling!
PALATE: Warm and inviting, rich and round but also… chocolate cake baked in a coal fired oven, warm salted caramel poured over oatcakes, and dried cherries stirred into melted coffee ice-cream.
FINISH: Very long and very lasting with abundant notes of raisins, dates, dried cherries, dark chocolate, roasted coffee beans, and coal smoke.
Here is the official flavor profile:
Nose: "Rum raisin ice cream" isn't far off, but the "Ashy" is spot on. Lots and lots of ash on the intial pour, followed by burnt bacon, sea salt, oceanic peat, and ... chocolate cake (!). It's a dark and brooding nose filled with charry sweetness and lots of fire/smoke notes.
With a touch of water, brown sugar comes out, as does more of that "rum" note.
Mouthfeel: Medium, medium, medium. Middle of the road in terms of heaviness and viscosity.
Palate: Lovely on the tongue, and more mild to boot: chocolate, coal, grain and ash, vanilla and sand, lemon candy at a bonfire where tea is being smoked (!). Quite nice.
With some water: Some peppermint or menthol emerges. A bit more chocolatey.
Finish: Long - smoke, vanilla, lemon, salt dominate for me.
Verdict: I like it - it's really grown on me. It's rich and extremely ashy, but has a lot of unusual angles that come out the longer you spend time with it. Worthwhile.
