Bruichladdich Octomore Edition 02.2 / 140 Orpheus 61% NV

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Serge Valentin (86)

Octomore 5 yo '02 2 Orpheus' (61%, OB, 140ppm, 2009) This heavily peated Octomore has been finished in Pétrus casks, Pétrus being the most famous (and one of the most expensive) of all Pomerols. This rather risqué combination sounds a bit like ‘The New York Dolls play Schoenberg’ (or Ann Coulter reads Engels) to me but what’s sure is that it should be fun (and we’re mucho into having fun with whisky!) Colour: salmon/blush wine. Nose: I’m sorry, all my references are useless here. It doesn’t smell exactly like malt whisky at first nosing, rather like something else, maybe a blend of tequila, crème de cassis and Finnish tar liqueur. What’s interesting is that this slightly reckless attack then transforms into something much more coherent, as if the spirit had defeated the wine. After ten minutes: a slightly rounder version of the previous ‘high-ppm’ version of Octomore (01.1, 02.1). With water: bye-bye Pétrus! I must say I like this nose a lot now. Very faint hints of the best wine vinegars (the Italians excel at that – willingly! ;-)) Mouth (neat): no dichotomy this time, wine and peat mingle right from the start, even if the end result makes me rather think of heavily smoked tangerine liqueur (should that exist) or even of a blend of bubblegum vodka and natural tar liqueur. It’s very unusual, but it’s not dissonant at all. With water: it got excellent, all on Seville oranges and almond oil. Finish: very long, with more notes of oranges. Comments: I had thought I would dislike this slightly ‘dog-and-pony-show’ bottling but I must confess that I really enjoyed it, even if I like the ‘regular’ Octomores better