hs305 scored this whisky 84 points

...and I can fully confirm Serge's tasting notes with respect to its "very simple" style. This Talisker is nothing else than another heavily peated pre-mature dram like all the other heavily peated young stuff out there. To me they all taste the same because there are hardly any aromas or flavours to recognise beside their massive wall of peat. If you love extreme peat you will love this dram, most probably. But until now Talisker stood for a completely different profile (complex, balanced and delicate) hence this dram is not a Talisker to me.
So maybe Diageo is jealous on the success of Bruichladdich's Octomore and Port Charlotte bottlings? To me this edition smells and tastes like a cheap version of these (much more interesting) heavily peated legends.
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The colour is pale straw and the nose offers a simple and immature profile like almost all young heavily peated drams I tasted so far, no matter from which distillery. Never ever I could identify any distillery profile in there, let alone Talisker. Yes, this is simplicity at its best (or worst, depending on what you like) - everything is eliminated beside the alcohol, barley sugars and peat. So if you are in for extreme peat aromas only this nose might be great, but if you are looking for something more it is rather boring. To me it is boring, sorry folks.
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The taste is about the same: peat, peat, peat, some barley sugars, some spices from the wood - that is it, simplicity pure. I still struggle to find the abstractness Serge is talking about, to me this taste is very real and (un)impressive. It tastes like dozens of other heavily peated young drams too (I just tasted about 50 different cask samples from a broker and all the young peated stuff tasted this way no matter from which distillery). Do not get me wrong: If you like heavily peated malt this taste might be great to you, most probably and this is absolutely okay. But there is nothing special about it, unless you own super-tasting capabilities and find flavours I do not get (or you prefer this "very simple and abstract style" like Serge). Sorry folks, but this taste is boring (to me).
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The initial mouthfeel is hot (because of the high abv) and bitter (because of the heavy peat) with an okay-ish coating effect. The finish is long (because of the heavy peat) but does not add any new impressions as with most pre-mature drams. The peat stays dominant and takes no prisoners until the very end. Where is the malt, where are the famous maritime Talisker flavours? Water does not release any new impressions either as it strengthens the anyway overpowering peat only.