Arran 14 Year Old

★★★★

The Arran distillery is located on the Isle of Arran, which lies off the west coast of Scotland. It is a fairly young whisky distillery by Scottish standards and the Arran website explains that production commenced on 29 June 1995. This whisky is bottled at 46% alcohol volume.

This whisky has a very light colour, almost like a rich white wine.

Nose

The nose on this whisky is light and pungent, giving off a dry peat and smokiness that grapples with sweet apple, pear, and the dry waft of chardonnay. Some dry twigs also present with a lush green grass and some dew, while a brine and saltiness is a constant theme. 

Taste

On the palate this whiskey is strong and it does not muck about. An explosion of peat and smoke is met with a dense dry grass and earth. There are some shimmers off sweet fruits like apple and pear but these are lost in the dense fog of smoke and chocolate layered nuts. Some sparks of spice, especially cinnamon, shine in that fog. 

Finish

The finish on this whiskey is thoroughly enjoyable. It has a long finish, though the only negative would be that it is a little unbalanced towards the dry side. For a whisky of 14 years it has a youthful spark to it, and although some very minor creases still need to be ironed out this is an excellent whisky with lots of character and depth. 

I did not particularly enjoy the texture of this whisky, which seems a little too watery and this in my view results in quite sharp and grainy flavours on the palate.