Bowmore 15-Year
43% ABV - Islay, Scotland
Nose: Citrus and raisin. Orange peel. Cherry syrup, sandpaper, and light–moderate peat smoke. Lightly floral after time.
Taste: Sweet, ripe fruits, a layer of smoke, and then it works into raisins and dark chocolate. Light, juicy mouthfeel.
Finish: Slightly drying, strong woods, and dried fruits. Medium length, with light smoke and the dried fruits on a slow fade. Somewhat hot at 43% ABV and with so many years in the cask. Bits of vanilla came through over the next few sips.
The Bowmore 15-Year is one of the whiskies that convinced me to accelerate my whisky journey! Although, that was the 15-Year Darkest that I had previously. This here is the refreshed, new label when Bowmore decided to drop the "Darkest" title. I can only assume that the recipe slightly changed or the barrels that they were using to finish a 12-Year ex-Bourbon matured Bowmore had changed. (I am fairly sure it’s an approximate 3-Year finish in ex-Sherry, but I’ll need to look that up…)
It’s a solid whisky, but I think the recent price hikes are significantly reducing the value—the Bowmore 15-Year is starting to compete in a different price range. In my local market it has gone up nearly 20% in the last few years. I thankfully have a bottle of the 15-Year Darkest in my warehouse (not actually a warehouse) so I’ll defer buying another one of the newer label 15-Year Bowmores as long as I can… that’s the one I’m drinking and reviewing this evening.
Maybe I won’t buy another 15-Year until the eventual rebrand! Seems to be a trend with Bowmore to change the labels and replace something in the core range every 4-5 years or so… we’re due in another couple years, I think. Please no more Aston Martin!
Note: This Bowmore 15-Year was tasted with The Devil’s Casks II 10-Year and the 1992 Single Cask Release 26-Year. Check out the other reviews to see how they compared!
Tasting Notes (Official): Discover delicious dark chocolate, sun-dried fruits, a wisp of Islay peat smoke, cedar wood and treacle toffee.
Tasted 11 April 2022. (Posted 07 January 2023.)
