Octomore Masterclass 08.3/309 Islay Barley

Oh, Octomore... it's been a while. I've always seen Octomore as the ultimate peat-lover's anthem. I've passed on some recent batches, not feeling the need to try every single one. But when Bruichladdich announced the 8.3 Masterclass as the most intense yet, I couldn't resist. They knew I would- and I resent them for it. This is just like your favorite Octomore - 5 years old and finished in various wine casks. This particular one exclusively uses Islay barley (terroir, indeed!) and comes in at 309ppm. Can the human tongue even register such a high level? I doubt it. It looks impressive on paper and on the packaging, though. It has a standard yellow-gold hue with thin droplets and skinny legs, attributed to the robust 61.2% ABV. You'll think your local road crews are paving your front yard the moment the cork is pulled. Ah, fresh tar... The nose is... (surprise!) fresh tar, burning tires, and smoky alcohol. Pepper sting is a bit sharp if you get too close too soon. Give it the time and respect it demands, and you'll detect some pleasant, chocolatey depth and rich, berry and plum sweetness - assuming your nose is functioning correctly. The palate delivers smoked peppers and a strong malt burn. Sugary toffee creams actually balance this better than any Octomore I can recall. It's oily and incredibly rich, seizing your taste buds and attempting to rip them from your tongue. Chocolate-covered raspberries find their way to the corners of your mouth and try their best to counteract the smoke and chili spices. It succeeds. Remarkably well. The depth is astonishing. The finish feels a bit hurried, with more chili and red pepper spice and heavy smoke coating everything. The young spirit finally reveals some harsh qualities, but you might overlook them while preoccupied with how to quell the burn. During the first few sips, I had to stop myself from reaching for water to calm the intensity. So, my initial 2-3 pours were quite remarkable. I was prepared to declare this the best Octomore I'd ever tasted. Ready to give it a 6 on a scale of 5. Then, oxidation set in and really dulled this bottle for me. The final few pours seemed lifeless. Still smoky, still warming, but the fire was gone. I started detecting cola notes and soft, milky vanilla - something I don't associate with Octomore. It didn't tank the score, per se, but it was no longer a 6 - hell, no longer a perfect 5. Like most Octomores, I was sad to see the bottle empty, but my enthusiasm diminished with those last drops. Perhaps I no longer need Octomore. I'm jaded. At $192, I'm not sure it's a great value anymore. Jesus, what's wrong with me? What have I become? 4.25 stars. I'm genuinely disappointed. Cheers, my friends.

Wow, what a great November day! Last night, an email from a favorite shop announced the arrival of the Octomore 8 series and the latest Compass Box releases (Phenomenology & No Name). Waking up early, feeling like a 4-year-old on Christmas, the car was fueled and ready. A quick look at an app and a review of CB No Name made me think, “This is it… the day I finally confront the king of peat!” Between Octomore 8.3 (309ppm) and Compass Box No Name, I was sure to be hit with a blazing peat log. Back home with my purchases, I quickly opened the two contenders and prepared them for a showdown. The rivals looked good facing each other in matching glencairns. No Name, at 48.9% ABV, wore light gold trunks, while Octomore 8.3, at 61.2% ABV, sported light copper trunks. Going nose to nose, No Name offered similar amounts of smoky malted barley and refined oak (American and French), all swirling in a rich pool of alcohol. Octomore matched No Name in toasted barley smokiness, but was richer and fruitier, a result of bourbon-aged American oak and European oak previously soaked in four types of French red wine. This extra boldness helped Octomore win a tie in this round. On the palate, both delivered a hot impact, with Octomore hitting harder due to its higher strength. With many peppery blows from both fighters, the audience couldn't pick a clear winner. Between rounds, water cooled them down, and they continued at a more manageable pace. Here, No Name displayed tarry elements from re-charring and some dry, mild fruitiness, while the larger-than-life Octomore skillfully moved around the ring, throwing complex jabs at dried fruits, nuts, and barbequed clams. At this point, judges scored the fight even going into the final round. The finish was hotly contested, with both aspirants going the full distance in incredibly satisfying fashion. The audience showed their appreciation with a 5-minute standing ovation, one for each star awarded. Both champions left the ring undefeated, but with a sense that a king might still be waiting in the wings to be discovered.

This review may contain statements that spark debate. To be clear: I'm on my second Octomore. I'm a serious peat enthusiast. I'm generally not a big admirer of Bruichladdich. I've had many Cask Strength whiskies. With all that said, I must admit this dram isn't very enjoyable. Even after adding a couple of drops of water, following a few sips, it's not a dram to savor, to keep for a long time, or a whisky for daily consumption. Some whiskies are like that but are far more pleasant. Octomore is recognized as the world's peatiest whisky, and this one is bottled at 61.2% ABV. It has a burnished gold color. On the nose: The peat is very fresh and perfumed. Mint; melted chocolate fudge. Smoke from a scented candle. Naphthalene, reminiscent of a public restroom. A nice buttery chocolate note. There's some citrus, more like lemon zest and grapefruit. A very potent freshness, like the strongest breath candy imaginable. Hay, very grassy, barley. It's not unpleasant, a bit challenging to nose; not bad at all. On the palate, it begins sweet before unleashing the most intense spice explosion ever. Chocolate and vanilla from the outset; Then an EXTREMELY POWERFUL SPICE EXPLOSION: PEPPER AND CHILI AND WASABI, IT'S DESTROYING MY PALATE, I even wrote this in all caps. The second sip is more manageable. Nice chocolate, still a lot of spices, excessively powerful. The aftertaste lacks complexity. It's not even THAT long. It begins with a puff of smoke, and then not much else. A medium-long finish, but my palate is gone, haha. A little grassy. Wild dips. Scorched tongue, though not an unpleasant sensation. Overall, this feels excessively young, overly simple, and too potent to be truly enjoyable. You anticipate a wide range of notes with cask strength, as flavor resides in alcohol, but that's not the case here. It doesn't feel "peaty"; it's more like scorching, and I genuinely believe some people (not all) praise this solely because of the "world's peatiest whisky" label. I love peat; I want to live in a peat bog, but this... this isn't for me. 80 out of 100.

Here I am in an Orlando hotel room, working on a presentation, eating spicy Thai food, and —most sacrilegiously—this beauty in a plastic cup. It truly deserved a proper glass; the plastic cup was just plain wrong, but it was all I had. Even though this has absurd phenol levels (309ppm), I still argue that ppm doesn’t necessarily translate to an equally intense peaty impact. This has plenty of peat—that’s not the point—but it doesn’t feel any stronger considering it's perhaps more than double or triple a Lag 16's and even 6x or 7x more than a Lag 16. It doesn’t taste 7x “peatier’ than the Lag 16. That’s because chemically, the human nose begins to discern phenol levels exponentially less after around 60ppm. Beyond that point, the nose starts to pick up other aromas. It’s a basic evolutionary mechanism; there’s no natural need for such a high sense of smell beyond 60ppm. So, is using anything above 60-100ppm just a marketing ploy, considering humans can’t perceive anything above that range? Yeah. Probably. So, that brings us to this. It won’t smell or taste any peatier than a Lag 16 or Ardbeg 10, but it will offer different flavors and aromas instead. While you get the medicinal notes in Laphroaig or the brine and salt in Lagavulin or smoky embers in Ardbeg, this offers some fruitier notes. You get some tropical fruit combined with that initial peaty taste. This is good. Actually, damn good. But…don’t go in expecting a massive peaty punch. Your nose and palate simply aren’t evolved enough to detect it.

Aged 5 years, 61.2% ABV, natural color, non-chill filtered. Nose: The aroma is dominated by a strong bonfire/tire fire smoke, but beneath it, notes of kiwi, cider apple, a touch of pineapple, pepper, caramel, and vanilla emerge. Taste: Incredible! A bold chili pepper flavor hits immediately, developing into a creamy, almost sorbet-like fruity sweetness. There's also a hint of chocolate that blends well. Additionally, there's sweet barley sugar and perhaps a floral note. It's generally well-balanced and quite complex, though a bit too rich for my preference. Finish: Medium length, led by pepper and smoke, with vanilla and some juicy fruits (plum, pear, blackberry) rounding it out, and a subtle cafe mocha flavor at the very end. Value: At $180-$250, I can't justify the cost considering comparable alternatives. Final thoughts: As this is my first Octomore, I'd like to rate it higher. It's exceptionally good. The complexity intrigued me unlike most other young heavily peated single malts. It most closely resembles Arran Machrie Moor but with considerably more peat. However, the price is simply too high in my opinion. My review approach factors in cost. So, while it's a superior peated malt to Ardbeg 10, Kilchoman Machir Bay, or most standard Laphroaigs, it's a stretch to say it's worth at least $100 more. Final score: 3.5/5 (Recommended to try or purchase if found at a good price. Thanks to a friend for the generous sample. It was my first experience with the renowned Octomore!)

Octomores come with a high price tag. I am a fan of Octomore, and most of them justify their cost. This particular one does not. Octomore has established itself as the peatiest of all whiskies, and the 8.3 is the peatiest of the Octomore range. You would expect such a spirit to be memorable, but it falls short. Being a peat enthusiast is akin to enjoying hot sauce. There are many hot sauces that claim extreme heat levels; they certainly cause discomfort on the palate, but they become forgettable after the initial intense sensation. This Octomore offers less complexity than other Octomores, although, I concur, it is the peatiest. This tastes like a severe illness has worsened dramatically. Whereas previous Octomores possess a remarkable maturity for their age, this one tastes like it's only five years old, offering little beyond an aggressively metallic, Terminator T-800-like peat. I typically rate the travel retail exclusive Octomores (x.2) as the least impressive, due to a bias against them. However, when comparing some travel retail Octomores blind against the 8.3, this emerges as my least favorite. Nevertheless, I must reiterate my fondness for Octomore, and I would still readily drink this whisky if the price were reasonable, valuing a bottle at $100. Score: 0 (forgettable) Cost of a bottle: $200-250 My perceived value of a bottle: $100