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Talisker 57º North

Whisky Advent Calendar - Day 6

0 995

@talexanderReview by @talexander

6th Dec 2013

0

Talisker 57º North
  • Nose
    24
  • Taste
    24
  • Finish
    23
  • Balance
    24
  • Overall
    95

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Distribution of ratings for this: brand user

I reviewed this whisky already, in March 2012. I've re-posted by review below. Hmmm I think I was a better writer then than I am now! I have to say, my assessment of it hasn't changed at all. I'm tasting it side-by-side with the 2000 Distiller's Edition, and it's amazing how similar, and yet different, they are to each other. Anyway, here's my original review:

"If you've read my earlier reviews, you'd have noticed I've worked my way through the Talisker 3-pack. Previous reviews were the Distiller's Edition and the 10 Year Old. Now - my favourite.

A coppery colour in the glass. The nose is startling, with ginger, peat, sea spray and smoked paprika. Water brings out lavender, believe it or not.

In the mouth, there is a flash of hot alcohol, much hotter than the nose. Then cayenne pepper! Wow! Mouthcoating but not syrupy, with very mild caramel with peat. Amazing! It doesn't feel like water really dilutes it; rather, it explodes the smoke wonderfully in the mouth and enriches the finish, which is deep, rich and long.

It is a beautifully balanced whisky. Each element is just different enough from the other to make it interesting, but in the same range so as to be harmonious. The peat doesn't dominate as it does in some Islays; but rather envelopes all the other salty and spicy elements while letting the mouth feel rich.

I love Talisker, absolutely one of my favourites, though I've only had these three expressions. This distillery exists on an island which really has no business having a distillery (though in 1823 it had seven); and it almost burned down in 1960. But the Island of Skye's sea spray and briny atmosphere, among other elements, has made its way into the whisky, justifying its struggles."

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9 comments

@JasonHambrey
JasonHambrey commented

Good reading reviews of this one - I picked up a litre bottle of 57 North Duty Free - it was actually a good deal (unlike many duty free 'deals'). This and the review from @Victor makes me pretty excited to crack open my bottle.

10 years ago 0

@talexander
talexander commented

It's fantastic - you won't be disappointed...

10 years ago 0

@JasonHambrey
JasonHambrey commented

I have had a quick sample of it, but I can't recall what I thought at the time amidst everything else I was tasting. And I quite like the 10 year old. Good to hear! sometimes it's hard to know with the less-available bottles.

10 years ago 0

@Nozinan
Nozinan commented

Just got it....was my DF buy in Ben Gurion. Chose it (and my marriage) over a Port Ellen (at around 2.5 grand).

9 years ago 0

@talexander
talexander commented

An excellent choice!

9 years ago 0

@Ol_Jas
Ol_Jas commented

Port Ellen is dead, just like my marriage.

That's supposed to be funny.

Actually, I'm commenting because this most enthusiastic of Talisker 57 reviews is fueling my own enthusiasm for the order I hope to receive in the mail next week. The US-based folks on this site are probably familiar with how the 57 is, for reasons unknow to me, not available normally here—thus the references to duty free purchases above. And shipping's a bitch from overseas. Well, I recently found an online whisky shop website that's shipping bottles to the US with free(!) shipping while they get off the ground. I've never had the 57, but all the reviews place is squarely in my zone, so I took the unprecented step (for me) of immediately ordering two bottles that I've never even tasted. If they arrive intact—or at all—and especially if I don't get stuck with a big duty bill—I'll be pretty stoked next week. One bottle to enjoy the hell out of with no worry about losing it forever afterward, thanks to the second bottle.

9 years ago 1Who liked this?

@talexander
talexander commented

@OIJas, I bet you'll love it.

9 years ago 0

m
maltmate302 commented

I do like this one a lot but not as much as some other members do. I find it a little young. The 10 year at cask strength would have been something very special indeed.

9 years ago 0

@Victor
Victor commented

For what it's worth, I have noticed quite a bit of difference between my first and second bottles of Talisker 57 North, from the git-go. My first bottle, a 700 ml from the UK, started subdued, and then blossomed beautifully within a couple of weeks of opening. It was a fabulous drinker from then to the end of the bottle. Worth every one of the 95 points I gave it. The second bottle, of a different size, 1 Litre, and from another source, Duty Free, didn't come quite as alive early, and I am still watching it. The jury is still out on that one for me. I will be quite disappointed if it does not evolve into something close to what I had with the first bottle. I am still hopeful, but nervous, about that one.

9 years ago 1Who liked this?