...where distraction is the main attraction.

Monday, November 12, 2018

Octomore Edition 07.1

ALL HAIL LORD OCTOMORE!


Though his competitors were more popular and successful, Dennis Octomore seized power through brute force, then dissolved all local governments and burned down the courts, naming himself Lord Octomore, el jefe de Peatsburg. He then had his competitors murdered, so now he is the most popular and successful and handsome in all the land.
Everyone who is not me is just terrible.

--Lord Octomore 
Thanks to the kindness of Lord Octomore, I am allowed to review Octomore 7.1. Peated at the ungodly brilliant measurement of 208 phenolic parts per million, it has the usual 5 year old Octomore age statement.


Distillery: Bruichladdich
Brand: Octomore
Ownership: Remy Cointreau
Region: Peatsburg
Maturation: American oak casks
Age: minimum 5 years (bottled 2015)
Alcohol by Volume: 59.5%
PPM: 208

NEAT
It has a well-layered nose. On one level there are dried grasses, leaves and roots. Then there's sugar, cinnamon and apples. Then there's cured meat and a hint of horse manure. It's also tangy (if one can smell "tangy") like fermented veg. The palate comes in hotter and plainer than the nose. Dried leaves and hay. Loads of peppercorns. Salt, peat smoke and hints of lemon and anise. It finishes earthy and grassy, with plenty of smoke and pepper.

DILUTED TO ~50%abv, or >1tsp of water per 30mL whisky
The nose is full of sugar and limes, as well as eucalyptus and mint extract. There are also notes of jalapeño oil and burlap. The palate is all char, ash, burnt things. It's tangier and sweeter than when neat. Also some Tabasco sauce and smoked meat. The finish is hotter, somehow. Mint and char and Tabasco.

WORDS WORDS WORDS
The combination of high ABV and stunt-level peating in a barely legal whisky is something I'd usually stay away from, but Octomore has always worked for me. Except...

Lord O is going to have my neck for this but the palate on 7.1 is both monolithic and moderate, if that makes any sense. It's huge but very simple. It's "Whew!" but "Okay". On the other hand, the nose is great, complex and pleasurable. Young but not raw. It also sets one up for a tremendous experience that the palate doesn't deliver. Yet I'm probably going to give this too high a rating because of the grand sniffer.

If His Lordship allows, another Octomore review will arrive on Wednesday.

Availability - Europe and USA
Pricing - Europe: $100-$150 (ex-VAT), USA $150-$200
Rating - 85