Torabhaig Allt Gleann Legacy Series 2 Single Malt Scotch Whisky (700ml)

Torabhaig is the first new distillery on the Isle of Skye in almost two centuries. Sir Ian Noble, a merchant banker with a deep love of the region, originally planned the distillery, but Mossburn Distillers took up the project after Noble’s passing. Following a painstaking four year restoration of an existing 19th century building, the operation has been churning out whisky since January 2017. Three additional expressions under the Legacy Series label will be released, all of which are intended to showcase the evolution of Torabhaig's distinctive style.

'Allt Gleann' is the second offering in the series, bottled in mid 2021 from small batches of no more than thirty casks (the inaugural release was around 100 casks). There’s no specific information as to the age of this malt, but it's reportedly drawn from stocks laid down in 2017 and 2018 and drawn from first-fill bourbon and re-fill whisky barrels. The distillery is set up to produce a traditional island-style (summed up as “Well-Tempered Peat”) with moderate smoke and weight combined with long fermentation in wooden washbacks Concerto and Laureate barley are used. Ample copper interaction provides a fruit-forward spirit. Right now they're focussing on marketing their single malt, but the size of the facility means they have an eye to supplying blends down the track. 46% Alc./Vol. Non chill filtered.

Other reviews... Fresh sea-blown peat on the nose, pine tar, sea salt, seaweed, dried seashells, and a tropical note of lime. Sweeter vanilla scents emerge, along with coconut, light nuttiness, and a hint of coffee. It’s peated but light and floral. The palate is honeyed, with vanilla, spice, dark chocolate, and lemon playing above beautifully integrated charcoal and peat. The mellow peat influence integrates beautifully into flavours that are dynamic, gorgeous, and memorable. 93 points  Editor's Choice - whiskyadvocate.com, reviewed by: David Fleming 2021

...The aroma is again noticeably peat-driven but with less iodine and more ashy smoke, sweet and mildly barbecued. The fruit remains lurking underneath it all with the bananas having ripened somewhat and added to a lovely pudding, complete with Nilla Wafers. On the palate, that initial smoke is still well-restrained with subtle matchheads, kelp, and kippers that turns sweet and fruity rather quickly. Those elements still don’t come across as “legendary,” as the initial literature advertised, but there’s something impressively bold about them in such a youthful single malt. Notes of buttery banana tart, apple pie filling, and white peaches give a decadent dessert quality, if only briefly, to the mid-palate before the smoke arrives again on the finish and rolls somewhat abruptly over it all. Still impressive and showing tremendous promise. - drinkhacker.com

...The Torabhaig Allt Gleann The Legacy Series is appealing and complex. Although a splash of water rounded the spiciness, I preferred the whisky neat. This would be an excellent peated whisky for those that prefer to avoid some of the harsher, industrial, and more confounding characteristics of peat. This is a distillery to watch. Mark your calendar for their first ten-year single malt being released in 2028. - thewhiskeywash.com