Sweet 'n' Peat

​​Islay has been long renowned as the place the best, strongest and peatiest whiskies come from. We're going to showcase 6 whiskies from the best Islay distilleries.

Who is Peat? Peat is the Scottish way of spelling 'Pete'. He made particularly good whiskies on the east coast of Scotland back in the 1800s.

No, actually peat is decaying plant material. Typically harvested from bogs, was used as a fuel for drying the malted barley for whisky. As coal or gas became more readily available they were more widely used, however in the more remote areas peat was still the most available source of fuel. Now the flavour that peat imparts on whisky has created the iconic taste typical of many of the island whiskies. Peat content is measured in parts-per-million (ppm) of Phenol. A mainland whisky might have 20-30ppm. An Islay whisky will have around 50ppm and in some cases (Octomore) upwards of 150ppm.

Simply put the peat gives the whisky a smokey taste. People either love it or they hate it. The only way to decide is to try it for yourself.

Too much peat can be a big turn-off for some whisky drinkers. That's why we're mixing it with something much sweeter. Instead of just going hardcore on all the peaty whiskies (as much as I'd like that) it might be nice to sample a few of the sweeter whiskies. You don't much sweeter than those aged in ex-Sherry or Port casks.
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Sweet
  • Speyside - Glenfiddich 19 Year Old Age of Discovery Madeira
  • Speyside - Glendronach 'Allardice' 18 Year Old Sherry
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Peat

  • Islay - Caol Ila 25 Year Old
  • Islay - Tomintoul Peaty Tang
  • Islay - Laphroaig Triple Wood

Sweet

  • Highlands - Glencadam 14 Year Old Olorosso Sherry
  • Speyside - Glenlivet Nadurra Matured Cask Strength
  • Speyside - Tomintoul Limited Edition 12 Year Old Olorosso Sherry
Peat
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  • Islay - Octomore 6.1
  • Islay - Bowmore 12 Year Old
  • Islay - Bunnahabhain Toiteach Distillers Edition