Kornog "Taouarc'h Kentan"

Kornog is the peated version of the Glann ar Mor whisky. This French distillery is located in Brittany, a region which has quite a lot of Celtic influence.

This is the first cask ever bottled of the peated spirit. Their (Scottish) malt has been peated to 35 ppm and matured in ex-bourbon barrels for three years.

Nose: very fresh, citrusy peat with light smoke and big notes of marzipan. A nice fruitiness as well (pears on syrup, pineapple sweets), slightly bubblegummy but very nicely so. There’s also a noticeable medicinal side (iodine, bandages) which gives it kind of a young Ardbeg profile. Hints of seaweed, rather faint but I hope this will become stronger after a couple of extra years in the maritime Breton climate. Give this dram some time and you’ll even notice some farmy notes and some garage smells.

Mouth: interesting flavours of marzipan again, with some pear and kiwi. Definitely more smokey than on the nose. Lemon. Hints of vanilla. Growing saltier towards the end.

Finish: very ashy with a big woody kick. Lots of peat.

Compared to other young peat bottlings like Kilchoman 3yo, this is more balanced (read: less peaty), more complex and surprisingly mature. Very enjoyable. Unfortunately it’s very limited and hard to find.

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