Seaweed & Aeons & Digging & Fire 18 Year Old Single Malt Scotch Whisky 700ml

Nose: Woody cloves and warm tarmac take the lead, with earthen charred pineapple, peach, and nectarine. Apricot fromage frais follows with a touch of vanilla, and furniture polish, with ashen, meaty peat.

Palate: A powerful tangle of sooty chimney smoke, herbaceous peat, and old oak. A soft smooth texture brings notes of Eat Me dates and chocolate salted almonds, cushioning savoury layers of parma ham and biltong.

Finish: Coastal bonfire embers smoulder while smoked herbs grip vanilla wafers. There’s spice, but it rests way off in the depths, kept at bay by a silky soft layer of stone fruits that emerge over time.

Overall: Impressive stuff, with mellow complexity offered up by the extra years, and the sherry, and the peat, and the smoke.