Arran Machrie Moor Cask Strength Single Malt Scotch Whisky (700ml)

We were enamored with Arran's early efforts which were defined by pristinely clean, sweet, unpeated malt. Like many others, Arran has diversified its portfolio since its inception, now offering a range of wood finishes, cask strength bottlings and even a peated whisky under the Machrie Moor label (it seems every distillery has to have at least one nowadays!) Their collection places Arran along side the likes of Springbank and Bruichladdich for sheer innovation and breadth. The cask strength version peated at 20ppm was released in 2014 and was a slightly disjointed but notable debut. The latest version [2023] takes the spirit to new heights, particularly in terms of texture; It's intense and malty with a kind of juicy grilled pineapple quality that dominates, the finish reclaiming some of the smokiness, lingering with tingling peppers, chillie heat, ash and trace lanolin. Rather than trying to mimic Islay, this revels in the quality of the distillate, leaning towards traditional Highland peated malts, especially on the palate. 56.2% Alc./Vol. Non chill filtered.

Other reviews... a heavily peated cask strength monster of a whisky, but being an Arran it manages to retain a sweet fruity core for that peat to balance against. It walks that delicate line between peat explosion and fruit bomb and is truly a tasty whisky. The addition of water brings up more honey, malt and even more fruit notes, but doesn’t do much to increase the depth. It all seems to come across fairly topical and it doesn’t take too much water to neuter it completely. So if you pick up a bottle of Arran Machrie Moor Cask Strength go easy with the water. I only needs a bit to open it up, but even without it’s a lovely crisp, sweet and peaty malt. - thewhiskyjug.com

[First batch tasted]. Wood smoke, warm tar, and emerging new leather on the bold nose. Sweet peat and spices on the palate, barbecue sauce, and black pepper. Long in the finish: vanilla, with sweet smoke and chili. 84 points - whiskyadvocate.com, reviewed by: Gavin Smith (Spring 2015)