Douglas Laing Double Barrel Talisker & Craigellachie 2nd Release

With a busy day ahead of me - shopping for a new bathroom vanity and dining room table - I need a pick-me-up on this Sunday morning, something to strengthen my resolve and bravely face the day! Goddammit!!

And what better to give me that boost than this unusual creation. Independent bottler Douglas Laing launched their Double Barrel range in 2008 with a Macallan/Laphroaig (God, I'd love to try that…) The concept is ridiculously simple: take a single cask from each of two distilleries and vat them together. No doubt this has done before but I don't think anyone has ever named the distilleries so prominently on the label. Which is brilliant because you benefit from the branding of each, and the curiosity of what they would taste like together (let's face it, we all do something like this at home, don't we?) They are bottled at 46% and are non-chill-filtered. This one is, I believe, their 2nd release of their Talisker/Craigallachie bottling. I'm a huge Talisker fan - and though I've never met a Craigallachie I didn't like, I know much less about that malt - so I'm very excited!!

The colour is of light, dry hay. A very unique nose, juicy malt with a very light citrus - in fact, like a very light San Pellegrino Limonata. Lots of fresh lemon. Quite floral; these must be young casks, especially given the light colour. Hint of asparagus? And the faintest whiff of smoke you could imagine, which is strengthened by a little water.

On the palate, the Talisker influence becomes clearer - chili, smoke and white pepper, but all wrapped in lemon zest. Milk chocolate. Hint of black liquorice. Beautiful oily mouthfeel - which gets wonderfully oilier with water, which also adds more chili.

The finish bring forth some more light peat smoke, with a chalkiness that is the only slight downside here. Late arriving humidor. I love this! I know more about Talisker than Craigallachie, and in the best way possible, this is Talisker turned down just enough so the subtleties are appreciated, while woven through with another top-notch malt. I presume this is the 2nd Release (and not the 1st Release) as Jim Murray's tasting notes for the 2nd Release better match my bottle, which he gives a 94.5. Brought in from the SAQ in Quebec.