Octomore seems to be getting a second wind of popularity - not that it was ever unpopular. Added to that is a sense of scarcity with allocations becoming smaller every year. 12.2 is no exception. The .2s in the series are known to showcase the impact of different wine barrels on the heavily peated Islay whisky. Distilled in the winter of 2015 from 100% Scottish grown Concerto barley, 12.2 weighs in at 129.7ppm and was matured in ex-Bourbon barrels, followed by 18 months in rare first-fill Sauternes casks. Knowing how well 'sweet & peat' can work, it's destined to be one of the more desirable editions to date. Bottled at cask strength, expect something sweet-ish with a salty edge, lots of earthy peat, sweet bonfire smoke plus hints of maritime complexity. 57.3% Alc./Vol. Non chill filtered. Very limited stocks .

"Very high quality & teasingly complex peated malt." 95 points - Jim Murray's Whisky Bible 2022 If your single malt selections are dictated by budget constraints, this will be a no brainer (so long as you don't mind a bit of peat). Conceived in 2006, Bruichladdich revived the Port Charlotte label from the Lochindaal distillery, operational between 1829 to 1929, two miles south in the town of Port Charlotte. Historical accounts from legendary British documentarian Alfred Barnard knew Lochindaal to produce only heavily peated malts, so the PC style is a replica of sorts. It started as 'PC5' with yearly follow-ups culminating in this general release 10 year old. Delivering a knock-out mix of lanolin, smouldering pine, butter menthol and vanilla cream that even the peat shy will fall for, it's superbly integrated, zesty, complex - and incredibly, at 40ppm the peat is not overbearing; Perfumed aromatics and a 50% ABV attack include Fisherman’s Friend lozenge, farmyard, dried grass and butterscotch as well as lanolin, oatmeal biscuit and chimney soot, followed by a finish that's delicately salty with dusty cocoa and hints of black tea. Both affordable and unanimously praised, it's one of those rare malts you can't fail to be impressed by. Matured predominantly in first-fill American oak casks, along with second-fill American and second-fill French wine casks, it comes bottled non chill filtered. 50% Alc./Vol. [2016 edition tasted].