Medicinal Taste

[Rodrigo]

Hello.
I recently bought a bottle of Laphroaig 10yr. I like its taste, specially the peat, but there's a flavour in it that reminds me of the desinfectants used at the dentist, which doesn't really please me. I asume that's the so called medicinal taste I read about in some whisky reviews. Among the highly peated whiskys (Laphroaig, Lagavulin and Ardbeg I assume) is there one not having that medicinal taste? According to flavour maps Lagavulin should be the one, but I remember reading someone saying it did have this medicinal taste. Sooner or later I will taste them all I asume, but for now I would rather leave the tastes I dislike to a side.
Thanks in advance

[bkblankenship]

Of the four Kildalton malts ( Port Ellen, Laphroaig, Lagavulin, & Ardbeg ), I think you will find that ARDBEG and PORT ELLEN do not have the medicinal nose and palate like the LAPHROAIG and LAGAVULIN. Editorial note: I LOVE them all; medicinal and all.

Aside from the being the heaviest peated malt on a continual basis ( not taking into consideration ARDBEG Supernova & BRUICHLADDICH Octomore ), ARDBEG weighs in at 55 PPM phenols. ARDBEG has the heavy smoke and burning embers; but instead of medicinal characteristics, ARDBEG has as its "signature" LOTS and LOTS of fruit. Pick up a bottle of 10-Year-Old, 46% ABV.

PORT ELLEN has a "signature" diesel fuel nose. Love it!! Love it!! Love it!!

[Rodrigo]

Thanks for the answer! Will get a 10yr Ardbeg then. By the way, Port Ellen stopped producing some years ago, right? Maybe I am confusing it with another distillery.

[Jojo]

Originally Posted by Rodrigo

Thanks for the answer! Will get a 10yr Ardbeg then. By the way, Port Ellen stopped producing some years ago, right? Maybe I am confusing it with another distillery.

Yes, the Port Ellen distillery closed in 1983. If you get the chance to buy a bottle of Port Ellen (and can afford it) then do so - it's a gem!

[Rodrigo]

Picked a bottle of Ardbeg 10yr today. It's fabulous. Peaty but not medicinal (at least not as in Laphroaig), fruity and really good. Really had an "Eureka" moment here.

Also bought a bottle of Edradour, wanted to try something woody and the shopkeeper recommended me that one along with Glenfarclas. Hopefully it is worth it.

By the way, concerning Port Ellen, he told me he heard the distillery was getting back to work or planning to do so. With some luck it isn't simply rumours.

[Jojo]

Rodrigo - the Port Ellen distillery was demolished in 1983 and a malting facility was built in its place - that's what I know. However, I can right to the source and get definite answer for you soon regarding whether there are plans to start producing once again.

[Rodrigo]

If it was demolished it will not come back most probably, and if it does I asume it would be hard for the whisky to be like the old Port Ellen.

Anyway, good thing that the shop keeper was wrong with the distillery info and not with the whisky, Edradour also turned out to be good.

[Jojo]

Can you write your comments / feedback on Edradour here:

http://whisky.com/forum/forumdisplay.php?f=7

I don't think we have any feedback regarding this brand yet - you can be the first!

[Rodrigo]

Can try, though it's hard to get the different flavours without much experience.

Reading about Port Ellen, found this about a conversation with Diageo's Islay general manager:

"I then asked him if there is any chance that the Port Ellen distillery will be reopened in the future, with Lagavulin and Caol Ila basically running at full production now. He said: "Well, I used to say no, but now I say never say never." He explained that Lagavulin is now running at full capacity seven days a week, and Caol Ila is running at full capacity five days a week. It would be quite expensive to go to seven days at Caol Ila, because then they'd have to work fulltime during weekends as well. It might be cheaper to set up another distillery or expand an existing one he agreed. He then explained that if they were to reopen the Port Ellen distillery, they'd most likely build a new distillery altogether, with better accessibility to the stills etc, a more modern site. We did not discuss the exact location of such a new distillery, but I think we can safely conclude that they are definitely thinking about starting up Port Ellen again. Even if they were to reopen in say 2010, it would still take until 2020 for some decent whisky to come from there though..."

If they rebuild Port Ellen, it would rapidly become a heavy seller with its reputation. It sounds like a sensible investment to me.

[Jojo]

Wow! That's really interesting Rodrigo! However, I received this response from top source in Scotland when asked about any plans for the Port Ellen distillery re-opening - and I quote: "There is no distillery at Port Ellen. Main buildings demolished some years ago. No mash tub, no washbacks, no stills. Nada. Nothing."

Interesting, all interesting.

Could be that off-note you experienced was due to a defective bottle. The defect could be too much air during filling, presence of bacteria in the wash, who knows what else. I've experienced this myself from time-to-time, tastes to me almost like new plastic water bottle, perhaps peroxide. Not pleasant, overwhelms the tastebuds.

One of my bottles in my collection had this defect. I contacted the distillery, who replaced my bottle with a fresh one via their distributor. Could be worth the effort to replace your bottle from Laphroaig, if you suspect it could be a defect.

[mikesven]

Originally Posted by Rodrigo

Picked a bottle of Ardbeg 10yr today. It's fabulous. Peaty but not medicinal (at least not as in Laphroaig), fruity and really good. Really had an "Eureka" moment here.

Also bought a bottle of Edradour, wanted to try something woody and the shopkeeper recommended me that one along with Glenfarclas. Hopefully it is worth it.

By the way, concerning Port Ellen, he told me he heard the distillery was getting back to work or planning to do so. With some luck it isn't simply rumours.

Back onto the topic of Port Ellen ... I was recently doing some browsing around on wikipedia, and there seems to be some mention on there of a new distillery in 2010.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Islay_whisky

Look about halfway down the page at the "Distilleries".

[Gwhacker]

Episode #263 of Whiskycast definatively buries the Port Ellen returning rumor.
Like Jojo said, there's nothing left except the pagoda- office spaces underneath :/

[blenderm]

The disinfectant smell and taste is what Laphroaig is all about and an inherent part of the character not a fault.