I love revisiting your old reviews. It really shows how you, the industry and we as whisky drinkers have changed. In the early days here you are very mild mannered and come across as someone not wanting to offend anyone. As the whisky climate has changed you have too and you've been the ultimate guide in my person whisky journey. Don't get me wrong, there's a few things you've said (all minor) over the years I haven't agreed with but you've always had your finger on the pulse of the whisky drinker. It's obvious that the flaws of the whisky industry have cut deep with you and this is more apparent in your presentation in more recent years but you are saying what we are all thinking. Please keep bringing forth your opinion on the changes in the industry, I don't think it has ever been more relevent. You are one of the true gems of the whisky community. Not tried any Dougie Laing in a while but I'll raise a Glen Scotia 15 to you and your channel, long may you reign!
Mr Ralfy, I was going through the special's in at the liquor store in town today, and noticed a nice and petite bottle of Big Peat sitting there. I just decided to give it a try, and discovered your review only after tasting it. I can't find any words to describe how much I enjoyed that whiskey. I'm not that much of a whiskey expert, but I have to say I've tasted far worse than that. To be honest, I think Big Peat is the best one I've had to date. I simply couldn't agree with you more!
Just tried this for the first time. Very nicely balanced and full-flavored. A bit heavier than Islay Mist 12. Notably lighter than Ardbeg 10 or Laphroiag Quarter Cask, yet still good texture on the tongue. Memory might be failing me, but it kind of reminds me of the Lagavulins of 10-15 years ago. Not the more recent Lags which, truth be told, I no longer drink often.
Now bruv, I did offer to buy you a bottle of that.... OK, largely 'cos I liked the picture on the label, 'cos I'm not a whisky geek like you. The offer still stands.
Big Peat is okay and actually more restrained than you might think. I think the Sheep Dip 1990 Old Hebridean owns it though and should've beaten it to best vatted malt at the WWA. It includes a 25 YO Ardbeg and a 19 YO Dalmore. What is not to love there? What's more - it REALLY works.
I just bought a bottle of this - I like it. But, surprisingly, they must rethought their caramel policy. My bottle is almost clear - I've never seen a whisky as colorless as this one. I'm surprised it can go into a barrel and not pick up more color!
I'd like to see a review of Monkey Shoulder also Ralfi, given that it is a blended triple malt - surprised I have not seen you review it as a solo yet already. I've got a bottle and it is a very interesting drop indeed.
I kept on seeing this whisky in my local bottle shop and thought it looked like a bit of a gimmick but I bought a bottle of it last week and I'm really enjoying it.
Hello Ralfy! 100% agree with you, and I didn't think your choice was controversial at all. Over the last 5 years single malt scotch whisky has got more and more expensive, and in some cases the quality has suffered. The price of Springbank now is outrageous, many places are trying to charge people well over £100 for the 10 year old. On another note, one of my favourite every day whiskies is "Big Peat." Last time you reviewed it was 14 years ago, perhapse time for a re-review? Cheers
Hallo Ralfy, my bottle of Laphroaig Quarter Cask bought in a German shopping mall says "Farven justeret med karamel" and "mit Farbstoff". Do you think that Laphroaig sells different versions of the Quarter Cask Single Malt? With regards, Michael
Just ordered the Big Peat Xmas edition myself! Kinda pricy here in Sweden, but I hope the big alcohol boost will make up for it by exposing lots of flavors. Dear Ralfy "Sensei" Mitchell, what will be your christmas-dram this year?
Hey Ralfy ! I took the blending a little further,i mixed big peat and Smokey joe 50-50 and in mine opinion its very good,probably its like cursing in the Church,but at least i liked it. I like youre stile Ralfy,serious but With a humour to Your passion !
Thats NOT a "MALT MARK" Ralfy!! BIG PEAT is vatted, correct?! You'v imparted so much wisdom upon us out here in the Ether that when we hear an inconsistency, .......anywhere, esp. frm the 'Mentor' we wince!! But no biggie, We're all human & yep we all have clay feet!! Cheers Ralfy!!
Am finishing a bottle of Batch 40: delightfully, youthfully sweet, with some heavenly top notes if you drink it immediately after pouring. (Not overpowered by vanilla, thank the whisky gods!) The peat is really quite complex with a mixture of "gentle old peat" (Port Ellen?), "savoury peat" (Caol Ila?), and "ashy peat" (young Ardbeg?) - just so yummy. The youthful sweetness is beautifully integrated with the complex peat - a master blender at work, I suspect: this whisky is a gentle, delicate giant. (P.S. - do I also detect some of those lovely sweet lemony notes arising from the Bowmore? I think so ......this is truly a dram to take your time with in order to really get to know it.) (P.P.S. - Batch 40 is VERY pale and I'd bet a moderate amount there is no caramel added.)
I would buy a bottle of this if it wasn't in the 60 dollars range. I could get Quarter cask for that much. I would think the blended malt would be a bit cheaper than a similar style single malt. Why pay the same price for the blend? Need to be in the 50 USD range, not 60 in my opinion.
Aroma is purely tar from birch or other leaf tree, kind of smooth but gets really smoky with water i suggest you don't dilute with ice or water it really just makes the smokiness overwhelming.
How can a blend of single malts be different to single malts? Single malts are not alike. Thats just one more whisky with its unique profile in taste aftertaste smell and look.
Apart from the nose, this whisky was a big dissapointment for me, even though I consider myself a peat freak. Especially in the end you get a cigarette ashtrayjuice-like taste which is not my Islay. Sorry.
I love revisiting your old reviews. It really shows how you, the industry and we as whisky drinkers have changed.
In the early days here you are very mild mannered and come across as someone not wanting to offend anyone.
As the whisky climate has changed you have too and you've been the ultimate guide in my person whisky journey. Don't get me wrong, there's a few things you've said (all minor) over the years I haven't agreed with but you've always had your finger on the pulse of the whisky drinker.
It's obvious that the flaws of the whisky industry have cut deep with you and this is more apparent in your presentation in more recent years but you are saying what we are all thinking. Please keep bringing forth your opinion on the changes in the industry, I don't think it has ever been more relevent. You are one of the true gems of the whisky community.
Not tried any Dougie Laing in a while but I'll raise a Glen Scotia 15 to you and your channel, long may you reign!
Is that Captain Haddock on the front label?
Mr Ralfy, I was going through the special's in at the liquor store in town today, and noticed a nice and petite bottle of Big Peat sitting there. I just decided to give it a try, and discovered your review only after tasting it.
I can't find any words to describe how much I enjoyed that whiskey. I'm not that much of a whiskey expert, but I have to say I've tasted far worse than that. To be honest, I think Big Peat is the best one I've had to date.
I simply couldn't agree with you more!
Such a treat to be able to go back in time with Ralfy...
Gracias Ralfy, es un gran Whisky y una forma muy asequible de introducirse a los ahumados de islay.
Just tried this for the first time. Very nicely balanced and full-flavored. A bit heavier than Islay Mist 12. Notably lighter than Ardbeg 10 or Laphroiag Quarter Cask, yet still good texture on the tongue. Memory might be failing me, but it kind of reminds me of the Lagavulins of 10-15 years ago. Not the more recent Lags which, truth be told, I no longer drink often.
I bought a bottle of Big Peat last week ,
Very impressed !
Thoroughly enjoyed it, I will definitely buy this again
Highly recommend it !
+MrYahooFreeman Just opened a bottle myself and have to agree. LOvely
Hey Ralfy,how's about a re-review on this one to see if it has changed over the years , I love the stuff
They definitely use Captain Haddock image on that label.=)
Now bruv, I did offer to buy you a bottle of that.... OK, largely 'cos I liked the picture on the label, 'cos I'm not a whisky geek like you. The offer still stands.
It's so nice that they stopped adding caramel.
Big Peat is okay and actually more restrained than you might think.
I think the Sheep Dip 1990 Old Hebridean owns it though and should've beaten it to best vatted malt at the WWA. It includes a 25 YO Ardbeg and a 19 YO Dalmore. What is not to love there?
What's more - it REALLY works.
I just bought a bottle of this - I like it. But, surprisingly, they must rethought their caramel policy. My bottle is almost clear - I've never seen a whisky as colorless as this one. I'm surprised it can go into a barrel and not pick up more color!
I'd like to see a review of Monkey Shoulder also Ralfi, given that it is a blended triple malt - surprised I have not seen you review it as a solo yet already. I've got a bottle and it is a very interesting drop indeed.
Made "Big Peat" sound so good, I have ordered some from "The Bottle Club". Just under £40 with a 5% spin win.
🥂 Thanks Ralphy 🥳
Just had the 2014 cask strength. As good as Big Peat is, the xmas version is even better!
I kept on seeing this whisky in my local bottle shop and thought it looked like a bit of a gimmick but I bought a bottle of it last week and I'm really enjoying it.
Hello Ralfy! 100% agree with you, and I didn't think your choice was controversial at all. Over the last 5 years single malt scotch whisky has got more and more expensive, and in some cases the quality has suffered. The price of Springbank now is outrageous, many places are trying to charge people well over £100 for the 10 year old.
On another note, one of my favourite every day whiskies is "Big Peat." Last time you reviewed it was 14 years ago, perhapse time for a re-review?
Cheers
Johnnie Walker Green IS a blended malt, but not the other JW bottlings.
Hey Ralf. You do better malt mentions than everyone else, for sure!
Big Peat-still good in 2015!
Hallo Ralfy,
my bottle of Laphroaig Quarter Cask bought in a German shopping mall says "Farven justeret med karamel" and "mit Farbstoff".
Do you think that Laphroaig sells different versions of the Quarter Cask Single Malt?
With regards,
Michael
Just ordered the Big Peat Xmas edition myself! Kinda pricy here in Sweden, but I hope the big alcohol boost will make up for it by exposing lots of flavors. Dear Ralfy "Sensei" Mitchell, what will be your christmas-dram this year?
Hey Ralfy ! I took the blending a little further,i mixed big peat and Smokey joe 50-50 and in mine opinion its very good,probably its like cursing in the Church,but at least i liked it. I like youre stile Ralfy,serious but With a humour to Your passion !
This is one of my favorites (just bought one online last week), along with some peated Benriach ones...
Thats NOT a "MALT MARK" Ralfy!!
BIG PEAT is vatted, correct?!
You'v imparted so much wisdom upon us out here in the Ether that when we hear an inconsistency, .......anywhere, esp. frm the 'Mentor' we wince!! But no biggie, We're all human & yep we all have clay feet!!
Cheers Ralfy!!
Am finishing a bottle of Batch 40: delightfully, youthfully sweet, with some heavenly top notes if you drink it immediately after pouring. (Not overpowered by vanilla, thank the whisky gods!)
The peat is really quite complex with a mixture of "gentle old peat" (Port Ellen?), "savoury peat" (Caol Ila?), and "ashy peat" (young Ardbeg?) - just so yummy.
The youthful sweetness is beautifully integrated with the complex peat - a master blender at work, I suspect: this whisky is a gentle, delicate giant.
(P.S. - do I also detect some of those lovely sweet lemony notes arising from the Bowmore? I think so ......this is truly a dram to take your time with in order to really get to know it.)
(P.P.S. - Batch 40 is VERY pale and I'd bet a moderate amount there is no caramel added.)
I just got myself a bottle, how can I tell what batch number it is? I can't seem to find it on the bottle or the cardboard pipe it came in.
Johan Schroll-Fleischer Sorry I've thrown out the empty - batch number was somewhere on the bottle/bottle label - can't remember exactly where though.
Found it! It's printed on the bottle itself, bottom on the back, not on the label, mine is batch 31, I haven't opened it yet.
Grabbed a small bottle from the local alcohol store. Cant wait for xmas eve to try it out.
Will have to look out for some of this. I've just bought a bottle of Port Charlotte An turas mor for my peat fix.
Just tryed a 10 year old tobermory just there,very intresting tast,a kind of smokie sweet honey and herbs,good stuff
I appreciate the art of them vatting single malts, but for anywhere close to $47, I'll just stick to Ardbeg 10 or Laphroaig Quarter Cask...
Interested to see some more "blended malts."
I would buy a bottle of this if it wasn't in the 60 dollars range. I could get Quarter cask for that much. I would think the blended malt would be a bit cheaper than a similar style single malt. Why pay the same price for the blend? Need to be in the 50 USD range, not 60 in my opinion.
Aroma is purely tar from birch or other leaf tree, kind of smooth but gets really smoky with water i suggest you don't dilute with ice or water it really just makes the smokiness overwhelming.
Hey Ralfy,
Do you actually believe it contains Port Ellen?
The label says it contains Port Ellen .
Yes, ONE drop.
Going to invite Big Peat to the House
Do you know what batch number this was?
Havent tried it yet, but I dig the madeup of the bottle.
for a blend its pretty good stuff !
Sounds interesting :)
its a dam cool bottle
How can a blend of single malts be different to single malts? Single malts are not alike. Thats just one more whisky with its unique profile in taste aftertaste smell and look.
This is now 73,50$ here in Canada
9 years later it is $75 here in Montreal. ..
just bought one today 3/24/2022
Slánge :-)
he said his pal gave him his sample :/
Apart from the nose, this whisky was a big dissapointment for me, even though I consider myself a peat freak. Especially in the end you get a cigarette ashtrayjuice-like taste which is not my Islay. Sorry.
Wow an old one before the alcoholism really set in 😗
This just tastes like liquid smoke to me. Makes me feel ill.