When it comes to smoky, peated whisky, there are plenty of options to consider from distilleries like Laphroaig, Ardbeg, and Lagavulin. But then there is smoky whisky that falls into another category entirely, with levels of peat that far surpass any of those beloved bottles. We’re talking about the Octomore series from Islay distillery Bruichladdich, of course, and the 2024 collection was just released.
This is the 15th edition of the Octomore range, an annual release from Bruichladdich. The core single malt produced at the distillery, the Classic Laddie, is actually an unpeated whisky. But the team there, led by head distiller Adam Hannett, pushes the boundaries of peat PPM with the Octomore whiskies, which far surpass the distillery’s other very smoky Port Charlotte series in terms of smoke. “Octomore is an experiment,” said Hannett in a statement. “It is purposely designed to spark intrigue and prove the unimaginable. Based on liquid profile alone this should be a one dimensional, overly peated Islay single malt Scotch whisky with no depth—but we’ve created the opposite.”
In other words, these whiskies are so heavily peated, and usually on the younger side, that Hannett believes on paper they shouldn’t work. And yet they do, based on the quality of the distillate, the focus on barley, and the different types of casks the whisky is matured in. There are three whiskies in the 15 series, all of which are aged for just five years. 15.1 is, as always with the first in the series, sort of the control whisky. It was distilled from Scottish barley, aged in first-fill and re-used and re-charred bourbon barrels, and bottled at 59.1 percent ABV with a peat level of 108.2 PPM. Tasting notes describe caramel, vanilla custard, mango, banana, and apricot jam on the palate. 15.2 was distilled from the same batch of barley so it has the same PPM level, but it was matured in second-fill wine and bourbon barrels and then finished in first-fill Cognac casks and bottled at 57.9 percent ABV. Expect vanilla custard, caramel, and pepper notes on the palate.
If you thought those two whiskies were smoky, 15.3 is a beast at 307.2 PPM, just short of Octomore 8.3’s 309 PPM which the distillery says is considered to be the smokiest whisky in the world. The barley was grown on a single Islay farm, and the whisky was aged in a combination of first-fill bourbon and Oloroso sherry casks from Spain and bottled at 61.3 percent ABV. The official tasting notes describe smoked cinder, toffee, and malted barley sugar on the nose, followed by dried fruit and orange zest on the palate. “Contrary to popular belief, we’re not looking to intentionally create the most super-heavily peated single malt whisky in the world,” said Hannett, “but rather create an extraordinary dram which demonstrates the perfect alchemy of peat, maturation, barley varietal, and cask type. And that’s Octomore 15.3 for me.”
You can find all of the bottles in the 15 series available to purchase now from websites like ReserveBar, as well as at your local whisky specialty retailer.
