Talisker Surge Travel Exclusive /45,8%/ – Talisker Distillery was founded in 1830 by Hugh and Kenneth MacAskill. It is located in the Isle of Skye, the largest and most northerly major island in the Inner Hebrides. Despite its remote location the distillery is one of the most visited in Scotland with 60,000 visitors annually. Talisker single malt was known only locally until 1988, when United Distillers (predecessor to Diageo) included 10 years old expression into the original Classic Malts range. Currently the brand ranks no. 8 single malt in the world with annual sales of over 3.3 million bottles (2021). Talisker Surge was introduced in September 2022 as a Travel Retail exclusive. The whisky was aged in refill American oak casks and finished in ex-bourbon barrels.
Nose: sweet and pleasantly smoky, toffee, crème brûlée, vanilla, forest berries, roasted pine nuts, green apples, and dash of white pepper.
Palate: peat smoke, seaweed salad, milk chocolate, golden syrup, stewed apples, peaches, cherries, salted caramel, white pepper and whiffs of sea breeze.
Finish: fairly long, with notes of vanilla, toffee, honey, sea salt, pepper, ginger, and distant whiff of smoke.