Kilchoman – Mezcal Finish Cask 741/2013 Beija-Flor (54.8%)

This is a single cask Islay single malt from Kilchoman, bottled at 54.8% ABV. It was distilled on 17 October 2013 from barley peated to 50ppm. The whisky spent its first years in an ex-bourbon cask. In early 2021 it was moved into a cask that had held Mezcal, where it stayed for a little over a year. It was bottled in early March 2022, and the outturn is 261 bottles. The nose offers salted caramel, raisins, fresh fruit and maritime peat smoke. On the palate come tropical fruit and lemon zest, with vanilla, milk chocolate and a warm smoke. The finish is long and clean, with juicy fruit, well-integrated peat and a sharp but lasting sweetness.