Connemara Turf Mor

Turf Mor means ‘big peat’ and that is to be taken literally. The malt is peated up to 58 ppm (as opposed to their regular peat-level of about 20 ppm). Actually, this Turf Mor was something of an experiment. And it’s now being released in Cooley’s ‘Small Batch’ releases of Connemara.

Nose: signature Connemara with gentle citrus and some toffee sweetness, but strong peat on this one. Earthy. Lemon peel and some rubber. Very nice!

Taste: Citrus fruit with strong peat, wonderfully balanced. Peppery bite without water. Water brings out the sweetness more. The bite has to do with the peat level, sure, but also with the fact that this is a very young malt indeed, only three years old. And of course, it’s a cask strength (a whopping 58,2%). This one is a swimmer. Don’t hesitate to try it with some water.

Finish: Long, dry and peaty. But definitely not in the Islay way, meaning it’s peaty but without the iodine/medicinal character.

To be released in December 2010 (20.000 bottles), this is a must-have whiskey. I read somewhere that it’s even finished on a sherry cask to give it extra depth and complexity, but judging by the color it was a refill sherry cask and a finish of only a couple of weeks. Nevertheless, this dram is indeed complex and will probably be gone before you know it. I don’t often say ‘buy this’, but I’ll gladly make an exception this time.

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