Bowmore 1991 Càrn Mòr Bequest The Chairman’s Legacy 26-Year
42.9% ABV - Islay, Scotland
Nose: Light oak and citrus hit my senses first, followed by caramel, vanilla, white wine, and malted barley. The peat smoke isn’t very strong but it is very "classic Islay"—and almost more similar to a Caol Ila than a Bowmore. After resting the citrus and fruit starts to become dominant.
Taste: Quite soft. Flavours of citrus (orange and lemon), peat smoke, and dry grass with a floral quality.
Finish: Faint fruits (dare I mention tropical?) with old oak and a salty-soapy character. Roasted nuts and ash. Medium-long.
The nose is very light. The ABV is relatively low, especially for cask strength‚ so it felt like I was fighting to pull out more notes before I had started sipping on it.
Overall, this is a strange Bowmore. It doesn’t have much oomph to the dram and I could be fooled this was another Islay whisky (like Caol Ila). It is nice to taste because it does provide good example of how single cask or very small batch Bowmore can differ from the distillery style of the core range.
As an aside, this is an uncommon series from Càrn Mòr (at least to my experience). I haven’t seen another "Bequest" bottled before.
Details: Distillation date: 10/05/1991, Bottling date: 20/11/1997. Four "exceptional casks" (ex-Bourbon) of Bowmore 1991 make up this cask strength Limited Edition of 565 bottles. This Bowmore was bottled to commemorate "the retiral" of the chairman Brian Morrison who "is a renowned figured in the world of Scotch whisky".
Tasting Notes (Official):
Tasted 16 March 2024. (Posted 15 April 2024.)
