Of Lore and Machir Bay

You doughty whisky blog readers out there are by now no doubt heartily weary of my circumlocutions, and even more so of my use of words like circumlocutions. Just give us the whiskey reviews goddamitall man. That be what we come fer!

So whisky reviews you shall have. I aim to please. Except when I aim to annoy. But you're in luck as today I aim to please.

Last week the redoubtable (sorry) Cabinet met to do something a little different. Normally we sample four whiskies during a meeting, but that evening we decided to sample two, and not because we are cutting back (shudder), but because we wished to sample each one twice, spaced by the other one, to see how that would affect our judgment. As the Cabinet accounts were flush with treasure we were able to purchase bottles of Laphroaig Lore and Kilchoman Machir Bay for this purpose. We tasted the Machir Bay, then the Lore, then the Machir Bay again which we scored on this second tasting, and then finally the Lore again, which was also scored at this point.

To the reviews!

Kilchoman Machir Bay
The Cabinet's score was 5.7, which translates into a "Two Drams" Honest Whisky Rating (maximum four drams, minimum zero). In plain English this means,"Fair. Recommended with reservation. Don't seek out, but don't necessarily avoid."

This is apparently now Kilchoman's core expression. Kilchoman began production in 2005, becoming the first new distillery on Islay in 124 years. It is still the smallest. It's first release was a profoundly underwhelming 3-year-old. We tasted it in 2013 and at the time said: "The nose is promising enough - a smack around the olfactories with the expected peat and smoke - but the taste snuffs out that promise. Yes, there is peat, but there is also sugar. Lots of sugar. And the sugariness lingers on the palate long after the peat dissipates. It was very odd; a bit like sucking on candied peat. The Cabinet wishes Kilchoman success and more luck with the next bottling. Score: 4.0."

Well, they did have more luck with the next bottling, but not substantially more luck. That sweetness remains and appears in fact to be entirely in keeping with their intent, as their literature promises "waves of honey" on the palate. I'm sure there are whisky drinkers out there whose pulse quickens at the prospect of "waves of honey". Such drinkers are not found in The Cabinet. It is worth noting that the Machir Bay is also quite hot at 46% and as there is not enough complexity to hide this alcohol,  the heat is right up front and difficult to avoid. The finish is quick and unremarkable.

It is also worth noting that many members stated that they would have rated it even lower after the first tasting. Somehow it appeared to subjectively improve, even though the scoring followed a taste of the superior Laphroaig Lore. Mysterious.

Laphroaig Lore 

Score 7.9, which is the very top end of the "Three Drams" range (i.e. almost "Four Drams") in our Honest Whisky Rating. Three Drams translates as "Good. Recommended. Must try."

By the old practice, this would have been known as the Laphroaig 7-Year-Old as the malts in the Lore apparently range from 7 to 21 years of age. But such is not the modern way and The Cabinet has to a large extent made its peace with that. In fact, to call this a "7-Year-Old" would have been misleading as it tastes like a far more mature scotch. The Lore has the richness and complexity you expect from Laphroaig, but some of the more aggressive peaty and feinty notes of the younger expressions have been toned down. They are still there, but it's not a tire fire in your mouth. Interesting to note is that at 48% it should burn even more than the Machir Bay, but it doesn't. The complexity masks the alcohol and makes water addition feel unnecessary. Shameful even. The Lore has a lovely long finish, allowing you to justify the cost with a more sensible dollars-per-minute calculation rather than the customary dollars-per-ounce.

In summary, the whisky was good and the night was merry. What more can you ask? Honestly, nothing.