Peated whisky is a divisive topic—some adore it, while others find it overwhelming. When I started drinking whisky, I could not appreciate the heavily peated drams. But as I explored more, I began to appreciate the earthy, smoky complexity they offer.
Tag: Douglas Laing Page 1 of 2
Whisky of the Week review and tasting notes for whisky from the Douglas Laing whisky brand. Established in 1948, Douglas Laing & Co is an independent bottler of Scotch whisky that is based in Glasgow, Scotland. Their brands include: Remarkable Regional Malts, with Scallywag, Big Peat and Rock Island as well as Old Particular and Provenance brands.
Today I look at a blended malt from the Douglas Laing stable, the Timorous Beastie 18 year old whisky. The original Beastie was immortalized in Robert Burns’ famous Scots poem “To a Mouse” and was a timid, little field mouse.
When I tasted the standard Timorous Beastie, I realized that this little field mouse had the roar of a wee big beastie inside. A few months later, I was also fortunate to taste the Timorous Beastie 18 year old whisky, which showed the roar of the lion.
The Timorous Beastie blended malt Scotch release is part of the Remarkable Malt range and stands tall next to Big Peat, Scallywag, and Rock Oyster is Douglas Laing’s stable.
Also Read: Aultmore 18 yo Whisky
Launched in 2017, the 18 year old Beastie blends whiskies from several undisclosed Highland distilleries. Based on some research, it looks like the distilleries include liquid from Dalmore, Blair Athol and Glen Garioch. Only 7,258 bottles were released. The Douglas Laing releases are non-chill-filtered and naturally coloured.
The Beastie blended malt whisky range also includes a NAS as well as a 12 year old whisky. There is even a limited edition 25 year old Beastie released by Douglas Laing.
Timorous Beastie 18 year old Whisky Review
REGION: Highlands
ABV: 46%
COLOUR: Golden yellow
NOSE: Bold and inviting. Honey sweetness with vanilla and a warming maltiness. Green floral notes mixed with orange and something tropical. Gentle spices and faint hints of salt and smoke.
PALATE: Elegant and juicy. It is not overly bold but wonderfully balanced and drinkable. Fruit salad sweetness drizzled with honey, an oily, malty mouthfeel with creamy custard and green hay. Bits of white chocolate and white pepper mixed with oak and nutmeg. Hints of lemon and barley. A bit of alcohol heat, but it is warming. This Beastie only needs a few drops of water to open up the sweetness.
FINISH: Medium length with drying oak and honey sweetness, faint chocolate and pepper.
RATING: DIVINE
What a delicious full body dram. It has a beautifully sweet, spicy balance and is warming and satisfying. The Douglas Laing guys had outdone themselves in this blended malt. They do know how to blend whisky to get the best results. The 18 year old Beastie is packed with bright, balanced flavour.
It retails for around R 1 500 in South Africa, and if you have not tried it yet, what are you waiting for. I saw some recently at WhiskyBrother&Co. There were not too many of them released, so grab a bottle and see the Beastie roar.
Also Read: Yellow Spot Whiskey
I am ending the year with my favourite Scottish fisherman; my last tasting notes for 2021 being for the Big Peat Christmas 2018 Edition blended malt Scotch whisky. Big Peat blended whisky needs no introduction; he has been a regular and welcome visitor on the blog over the last couple of years.
The Big Peat Cape Town Edition is one of my all-time favourite drams, and the Big Peat 26 year old Platinum Edition whisky is just as delicious. Since 2011, Douglas Laing has released a yearly limited edition of Big Peat to celebrate the festive season.
Also Read: Ardbeg Uigeadail vs An Oa Whisky
The 2018 label features Big Peat dressed as a Santa, trying to shimmy his way down a chimney. However, it seems that he got a bit stuck. The expression on this face is, as always, comically serious. The bright red and white labelling and packaging stand out between the more traditional bottles and look festive and tempting.
The 2018 edition is a blended malt small batch recipe that uses 7 Islay malts. Non-chill-filtered naturally coloured and bottled at a cask strength of 53.9%. The distilleries used in the blend include Ardbeg, Bowmore, Caol Ila, and Port Ellen.
Big Peat Christmas Edition 2018 Whisky Review
REGION: Islay
ABV: 53.9%
COLOUR: Light golden straw
NOSE: Smoke, BBQ, earthy peat, tarry coal; all the Islay notes you come to expect from Big Peat. It is interlaced with a honey sweetness and some malt. The nose is lovely and balanced and not overwhelming or intimidating. Bits of BBQ spice and hints of dried pineapple and salted caramel. Just beautiful and warming.
PALATE: Soft and smooth with no alcohol heat! At 53%, you don’t have to add any water. Warming coriander and cumin, peat, smoke, with oak and bits of autumn fruit drizzled with honey. Hints of vanilla and dried salty seaweed. Wildflowers with bits of malt. Very oily and thick. It took me 3 glasses before I got around to add water. It is just perfection.
FINISH: Lingering with hints of peat, honey and mild warming pepper.
RATING: DIVINE
What a divine way to end this crazy Covid year’s tastings. This dram put a HUGE smile on both my and John’s faces. The BBQ notes remind me a bit of the Big Peat Cape Town Edition, but this release has a more flower honey sweetness to it.
It is rich and complex with enough Islay notes to impress peat lovers but is accessible enough for a Speyside lover as well. It has a superb balance between earthy and sweet notes, a perfect way to end the year.
I need to get my hands on more of the Christmas Editions. Looking at the 2021 Christmas Edition, Big Peat is enjoying a spot of sledding. I don’t think that edition will make it to our South African shores, but I will certainly look out for it when we travel again (one day).
Also Read: Compass Box No Name No 2 Whisky
I love the Big Peat releases. They are fun, original and most importantly, delicious. This week I am looking at the Big Peat that started it all. The Big Peat blended malt Scotch whisky, the original Ileac fisherman.
Last time I looked at the Big Peat 26 year old Platinum Edition and also at the Big Peat 10 yo whisky, but this release today was the start of it all.
This blended malt release from Douglas Laing was the first in their Remarkable Regional Malts series. Big Peat is a mix of whisky from Ardbeg (medicinal notes), Caol Ila (sweetness), Bowmore (balance) and Port Ellen (elegance).
Douglas Laing released Big Peat for the first time in 2009. The frowning fisherman in his signature yellow jersey has been featured on a variety of special releases in the past 10 years. His best known is the yearly Christmas Edition Limited bottling.
Also Read: Reisetbauer 12 yo Whisky
The Christmas Edition is usually bottled at cask strength to warm the coldest heart over the dark snowy Scottish winter with festive flair and zest. There is also a limited edition Big Peat 26 year old whisky that is just divine!
However, today I look at the start of the range; the bottle that started it all. Douglas Laing bottled Big Peat without added colour or chill-filtration. It is readily available and retails for around R650.
I chatted to Hector Mcbeth about this release over on Instagram, and he said that every bottle of Big Peat has a bit of older Port Ellen in. It is a NAS release with no added colour and non-chill-filtered. It is peated to about 40ppm.
Big Peat Blended Malt Whisky Review
REGION: Islay
ABV: 46%
COLOUR: Very pale gold
NOSE: Sweetness balanced with peat, barley and vanilla. Fruity sweetness with hints of chocolate and nuts. Soft smoke and little bits of salty ocean air. The nose makes me think of eating grilled peaches on the beach. Fruity with just hints of salt and peat.
PALATE: Ash, tar and peat. The sea breeze is blowing the BBQ smoke all around. Easy drinking and delicious. The sweetness from the nose is replaced with Islay notes. The sweetness comes through later with creamy chocolate, vanilla and bits of roasted nuts.
Even though it is a 46% ABV, you don’t need to add water. It goes down very smoothly with no alcohol heat. Water brings more grilled fruit sweetness to the front. Big and bold.
FINISH: A medium finish with bonfire ashes, peat and hints of white pepper.
RATING: EXCELLENT
I am a big favourite of the frowning fisherman. According to Hector, Big Peat is very popular in Belgium as well. I can understand why. He is easy-drinking, exciting and fun. The packaging is innovative, and the liquid is consistently delicious. I have yet to taste a Big Peat that I don’t like.
Looking at what food to pair this Big Peat whisky with, options include strong cheese such as blue cheese; I can see why that would work. The robust fisherman needs a strong taste to stand up next to.
The creamy nature of the blue cheese will work deliciously with the peat and ash from the whisky. Smoked BBQ ribs would also work wonderfully, and Hector suggests a tomato-based stew to match the acidity.
This dram also made it onto my favourite peated whisky list. You can read this article all the other peated drams that also made it onto the list.
Also Read: Great whisky gifts under R1000
This weekend is the Rugby World Cup Final and what better way to prepare for South Africa’s part than to taste the Big Peat Cape Town Edition blended malt Scotch whisky. It feels like it was Remarkable Malts’ year on the blog.
I have tasted quite a few of their expressions during this last couple of months. I covered Rock Oyster and Timorous Beastie as well as Big Peat. I covered Big Peat quite a few times.
Even at the whisky shows, I ended up at the Remarkable Malts stand, tasting the various age statement releases available. The Timorous Beastie 18 yo whisky especially stands out. I have captured tasting notes for the Big Peat 10 yo whisky and the Big Peat 26 yo Platinum Edition (Divine) as well.
But what better way to celebrate SA winning the final of the Rugby World Cup than with the Big Peat Cape Town Edition blended malt whisky. In June I tasted this release at The Only Whisky Show and was blown away.
I took a bottle home, and it went with us on our holiday to Mapunbugwe National Park. There we nearly finished the bottle.
As the sun goes down, the elephants come down to the watering hole for a drink. Watching them with a visitor from Islay. #africansunset #remarkablemalts #bigpeat #bigpeatcapetown @HectorMcBeth @valotone @RemarkableMalts pic.twitter.com/5FA99Xg2Av
— WhiskyoftheWeek (@WhiskyoftheWeek) September 26, 2019
Big Peat Cape Town Edition is exclusive to South Africa and part of the Big Peat World Tour City Series. It is a blended malt using Islay whisky and peated to 44ppm.
The label honours South Africa’s Mother City with a braai in front of the famous Devils Peak in Cape Town. As with all Remarkable Malt releases The Big Peat Cape Town Edition whisky is not chill-filtered and bottled at a rather decent ABV.
Big Peat Cape Town Edition Whisky Review
REGION: Islay
ABV: 48%
COLOUR: Lightest gold
NOSE: Peat and ‘braai’ smoke with hints of blueberry sweetness. Bits of spice and earthy notes mixed with oak and red apples.
PALATE: Ash, peat and smoke. Like standing next to a ‘braaivleis vuur’ (BBQ fire). Fresh fruit sweetness with hints of salted caramel and dark chocolate. Bits of crispy bacon and pepper. Adding water brings forward the sweetness. It is big and bold but in a laid-back and unpretentious way. It is just delicious!
FINISH: Peat and smoke that goes on forever with hints of salt and pepper.
RATING: DIVINE
John is originally from Cape Town, and this Big Peat Cape Town Edition made him nostalgic. It brought back many good memories.
The notes I took while in Mapungubwe read: Sometimes you find a whisky that makes you want to sit down and have deep philosophical discussions with a loved one. But once in a while, you find a whisky that makes you forget about everything else and requires you to be present.
Not solve world problems, not deep philosophical discussions. But the quietness of nature, to look into the eyes of the elephant and just be.
I loved Big Peat the first time I tasted it, and I loved it on holiday. And I still loved it when I poured it for my Friday afternoon tasting session. The bottle will not see the end of this year. The next bottle of Big Peat is already ordered. Just don’t tell John. He is getting it for Christmas.
Also Read: Powers John’s Lane 12 yo Irish whiskey