I decided to do the Bunna 3-ways tasting using one of the smaller taster glasses (a Kilchoman one, if that's allowed!) as the rest of this evening is going to be more beer & pizza than whisky. Here's my thoughts on what are 3 very find whiskies (which were tasted in this order as well!):
Stiureadair (NAS)
- 46.3% ABV
- first & 2nd fill sherry casks
- sharp, spicy, fruity - some sweetness but not too much
- very nice, especially at the £25-28 I paid for it. Great general purpose whisky which I use in one of my hip flasks
12 year old
- 46.3% ABV
- Bourbon and sherry casks
- Rich, Sweet, lots of fruit, caramel - less spice than the Stiureadair and more full bodied
- Also very nice. On MoM it's about the same price as the Stiureadair but I don't think I've seen it discounted as much. Overall pretty much like a richer, fruitier version of the Stiureadair.
SMWS "Sweet, Smoked Salmon Jerky" (7 year old) which is a release for the 2021 Islay Whisky Festival
- 59.6% ABV
- Oloroso and Pedro Ximenez casks plus re-charred hogheads
- This one is peated but it's more Lagavulin (or maybe Kilchoman) style campfire smoke than a phenolic Laphraoig style. It's certainly sweet and definitely smokey although not quite so sure I'm getting "Salmon Jerky" (not that I've actually tried salmon jerky). You can obviously tell the difference in ABV compared to the other two but it's not overpowering, although I did add water for the 2nd half of the dram and it's also nice like that. Once you get past the smoke then the fruitiness is there along with some nuts (a hint of almond in particular), with those become a tad more obvious with water added.
- Very nice indeed although at £67 or so it's a good bit more expensive than the other two. It does taste like it should be more expensive than them though.
All very nice drams however I think I'll need to do another taster with the SMWS alongside the Lagavulin 16 and cask strength Kilchoman Machir Bay as it probably reminds me more of them than it does the other two Bunna's - and they're also more of a price match.
Definitely best I did the SMWS one last because while it's not Octomore levels of peat it's definitely having an effect on the taste of the Innus & Gunn beer I've just opened.