Glengyle Kilkerran Cask Strength, 8yo 2017

Rating28.3/40
OriginScotland, Campbeltown
DistilleryGlengyle
OwnerMitchell Family
SeriesKilkerran
EditionCask Strength
StyleSingle Malt
PeatedYes
CaskEx-Bourbon
Bottled2017
Bottles6,000
Strength55.7% (111.4 Proof)
WhiskybaseWhiskybase
Wine SearcherWine Searcher

This one-off small batch release of a younger and more aggressive expression adds another facet to Glengyle’s Kilkerran line of peated single malts, which already includes a number of “Work In Progress” as well as some heavily peated batch releases. Though the most commonly available bottling is probably the basic bottle strength 12 year old.

Nose:  A soft perfume-y smoke, more bubble bath than peat really. It jumps out and up at you but then, ultimately, it doesn’t amount to much more than a thin bubble pushing some perceptible notes with not a whole lot of substance behind it. Not unpleasant, but also not really a whole lot of… anything. (6.1/10)

Palate: Aha! Stuff! Finally! Pretty aggressive and bouncy in its youthfulness. A sharp hit of smoke, a bunch of loose staves of unripe wood clatter about noisily, but all of that dies down quickly and what’s left can’t quite make itself be heard after the ruckus of the initial impact. Later sips are very candy… probably why the kids were bouncing off the walls like that. (6.5/10)

Finish: The kids have tired out and settled down. Finally it’s a quiet and peaceful around here. Mouth and throat are left feeling empty from the sudden silence. There’s a few wooden toys left scattered about the floor that need tidying up. But someone’s got the fireplace going on the other side of the living room and there’s a welcoming heat beckoning us to come on over from deep inside in the chest, just above the diaphragm. This is nice. (8.5/10)

Balance: The finish makes me want to forgive the whisky for the underdeveloped nose and the irritating palate, but this is a review and I’ve got to be honest. Still that finish is nice to settle into. Don’t bother sniffing. Just sip, swish and swallow, then sit back and let out a deep breath. (7.2/10)

Glengyle Kilkerran Heavily Peated Batch #1, 2019

Rating27.0/40
OriginScotland, Campbeltown
DistilleryGlengyle
OwnerMitchell Family
SeriesPeat In Progress
EditionHeavily Peated Batch #1
StyleSingle Malt
PeatedYes (45 ppm)
Cask55% Ex-Bourbon, 45% Ex-Sherry
BottledFebruary 20th, 2019
Strength59.3% (118.6 Proof)
WhiskybaseWhiskybase

The first batch of a heavily peated, youthful expression under the Kilkerran label of Springbank’s young sister distillery, Glengyle, both owned by the Mitchell family. The stills used at Glengyle were acquired from the old Ben Wyvis distillery, which only survived for 12 years and closed in 1977.

Nose: Well… it’s peated, yes, but I’m not sure about it being peated heavily. There is a mild savory undercurrent of medium hot curry with potatoes and lentils. Later we’re looking at it through a large frame of unaged wooden. The peat is greener and more grassy than I would prefer. (6.5/10)

Palate: Aha! Here this whisky easily appears twice as peaty as the nose, for sure. But, again, there is his unripe green and grassy note throughout. And that unaged wood also arrives just a little later. (6.5/10)

Finish: Smoke and warmth mingle pleasantly. But once again those pesky green notes stick their head out here and there. Still, at least for me, this is the most rewarding aspect of this whisky. (7.5/10)

Balance: The whole thing feels very young to me (which, normally, is not at all a bad thing when it comes to peated whiskies) and I suspect it’s almost certainly younger than the 8 year old cask strength Kilkerran I’ve reviewed elsewhere on this site. I’m just not a huge fan though it’s certainly drinkable in a pinch. As much as I’m trying, I just can’t get past those green notes. (6.5/10)

Glengyle Kilkerran, 12yo.

Glengyle Kilkerran 12yo., close-up
Rating28/40
OriginScotland, Campbeltown
DistilleryGlengyle
OwnerMitchell Family
StyleSingle Malt
PeatedYes
Strength46% (92 Proof)
WhiskybaseWhiskybase
Wine SearcherWine-Searcher

The 12 year old Kilkerran is the baseline single male release of the youngest Campbeltown distillery, Glengyle. The name Kilkerran was chosen to avoid confusion with an existing Highland blend bottled under the same name of Glengyle.

Nose: Wood sticking out of a roll of wet felt that’s been drying since someone spilled some lightly peated whisky on it a little while ago. Later some wine notes making a non-committal showing in the background. (6.5/10)

Palate: A bright flash of an initial hit infused with mildly sour plums spreading out from a high center splashing outwards towards the edges of my mouth. Almost seems to float a millimeter or two above the tongue refusing to make contact. Geometrically interesting but not a ton of flavor. (7.5/10)

Finish: The splash from the palate leaves a ring of residual flavor around the fringes of the mouth that is quite pleasant. But there’s not a lot happening in the back. There’s bits alive in slow waves on my breath but overall it sort of just peters out. (7/10)

Balance: The dynamics of the palate is the most interesting part but I wish there was just a little more of a constant deep finish to enjoy afterwards. The nose is… a bit meh. (7/10)