Talisker 1993 Distillers Edition

Nose: Immediately a strong waft of wet grass, perhaps more like when you leave a wet and muddy t-shirt in a bag for too long and it starts to mould. Definitely a hint of stale water in any case, as we work down towards the fruit, of which there is plenty, a feast of peaches in fact, with a few citrus and orange notes thrown in between. As we work down towards the sweeter and more malted notes, we can savour sweet shortbread and carameled barley, before ending on a some subtle smoke, liquorice and aniseed. A very compelling nose, that seems to cover nearly every flavour profile that one could expect from the nose, while also strongly representing it's sherried character. In fact, when watered down slightly, from a distance one could be forgiven for thinking this was in fact a sherry or a fortified white wine. Very much a nose for all seasons.

Taste: Full bodied and oily, with a strong creamy character, revealing much of the shortbread from the nose, while also introducing a rich fruit crumble, perhaps of the plum variety. There are some more classically 'Talisker' notes to be found here, most notably smoke, pepper and seaweed, but there's nonetheless some more global notes of ginger, creme brulee and rich barley. Has the feel of a Talisker ex-pat who's national characteristics have softened after so many year's abroad. Not necessarily for the worse either.

Finish: Quite big and explosive, however it all happens quite quickly. The apple is very much at the epicentre, while iodine, salt, pepper and coal are flung out in all directions. In the immediate aftermath we are left with some floating cereal and cauliflower, slowly coming down to settle on the soft caramel turf below.

Balance: I never quite know what a 'Distiller's Edition' is supposed to mean. It's not like a Director's a cut where the director is allowed to show the edit that he wanted to release had he not been under the iron-fisted rule of the studio. At the Distillery the the Master Distiller is the director and producer all wrapped into one, therefore all distillery bottlings should be seen as 'Distiller's Editions'. Perhaps it's in fact the reverse of the director's cut, where the studio (in this case Diageo), comes in and releases the edition that they'd want to show to the world, rather than what the more radical director intended to show. If so then they have produced a very worthy ambassador of the Talisker nation, one that can go out and charm the world, while expressing the Talisker policies with a mild and sensitive approach, and taking into consideration the policies of the varying other global distilleries. A diplomat, a man for all seasons, but very much from Talisker.