Oddly this is my first review of a Kilkerran on the blog. I’ve had a few of them, but never properly written tasting notes, so it seems. Kilkerran is distilled at Glengyle and is virtually a sister distillery of Springbank,rebuilt in 2000 and re-opened in 2004, and owned by J&A Mitchell the same company that owns Springbank.
A few months ago I tasted an outstanding Kilkerran work in progress, and loved it. This is a distillery to watch out for (not a big surprise,right?), and when somone suggested a bottle share of a rather interesting Calvados cask, I was definetly in! I am not a big Calvados drinker myself, but that cask type always intrigues me. I did not know quite what to make of this one really, it’s not bad, but it’s also not what I was expecting from A kilkerran. This is a single cask, bottled at 57.3% abv,distilled May 2006,and bottled October 2015 – you do the math..
Kilkerran Calvados Single Cask , 57.3% , £54
Nose: I was expecting a more apple-y profile, although there is some green apple peel here, it’s not overly Calvados as you might expect. There’s also some citrus, and a green herbal quality, as well as some varnish, and freshly cut parsley. There’s also a bit of peat, but it’s not as dirty as some Kilkerrans are, frankly i am a bit underwhelmed.
Palate: A big spicy entry, with pepper, more apple peel, hints of mezcal, and earthy peat, much more than on the nose. This is getting more Kilkerran-y, and it’s a good thing. Green pepper,spices and oak.there’s quite a bit of alcohol too, and a rough edge, which gets sweeter with more barley sugars and vanilla,more spices, and some pencil shavings.
Finish: smoke, drying with more oak, spice.
Bottom line:
This is not a bad whisky, but it’s also not as good as I expected having tasted previous Kilkerrans. I’d say the palate and nose are all over the place, and although there are traces of greatness, This is not a dram I shall remember , I guess. I think of it as mostly an ‘educational’ dram.