We were all in agreement nosing neat – a bowl full of herby chicken and bacon lardons with a red onion mash next to a green lentil curry. On the palate, we sat on lovely sun-warmed stones at the beach listening to the calming sound of “singing sand” and eating salty crackers with a smoked tuna dip. Dilution delivered an aroma of peat-smoked marshmallows and charred lobster meat combined with an emerging freshness of sea salt and citrus.

The taste was delicious and so mouthwatering, like pâtes à la saucisse de Francfort eaten straight out of the frying pan. Following 5 years in an ex-bourbon hogshead we transferred this whisky into a 2nd fill Pedro Ximenez hogshead. Bottled for the 2023 Islay Whisky Festival.