This Arran is going to open the distillery tasting that Gluglu Whisky Club organized for next thursday. Every dram will be paired to a dish prepared by the chef of the prestigious restaurant Teatro, in Como: this Machrie Moor will be accompanied by a fresh marinated salmon, as a starter – we’ll let you know how it works! Machrie Moor is a ‘strange’ whisky by Arran: it’s the peated version of their single malt, now arrived to the 5th edition – this release was distilled with a 20ppm peated malt, a bit higher than previous versions (14 ppm). It’s all ex-bourbon cask matured.
N: the very first nosing brings us a vibrant smokiness, that in some sort of way reminds us of some young Bowmores, but without the sea breeze. There’s some burnt plastic, that preludes to a young and malty profile, with cirtus (lime, candied cedar fruit) and some light vanilla. It heathens up a bit, with sandalwood and that lovely smell of wood left at the sun. Quite herbal too.
P: the keyword is: balance. There’s a gentle (but nod bland at all, mind you) peatiness, again burnt plastic, and then a nice sweetness, not too pandering – lychees, liquid sugar, candied citrus.
F: quite long, smoky, with soft vanilla notes.
This dram doesn’t seem to have flaws, but only a nice serie of little qualities: it’s easily drinkable, quite balanced and delicate, and the smokiness isn’t bland at all, stimulating your senses. It’s also quite cheap too, since it’s available at around 35/40€ when the current market tends to push up the prices for no reason. 84/100 for us.
Recommended soundtrack: Mozart – Papagena/Papageno Duet – Montserrat Caballé y Thomas Quasthoff
