Talisker Distillery
Robert
Louis Stevenson mentions Talisker in a poem he wrote in 1880, calling
it one of the King o' drinks, as I conceive it'. Talisker was
established by Hugh and Kenneth MacAskill in 1830 at Carbost on the
shore of Loch Harport, set in the lee of Cnoc-nan-speireag-Hawkhill.
Hugh was a tacksman, (a gentleman tenant-farmer who leased land to
others) and he himself acquired the lease of Talisker House and
estate from Macleod of Macleod, the chief laird in Skye. Having
cleared the land of people to make room for sheep, he established the
distillery.
However
it did not prosper and the lease w as taken up by the bank in 1848.
In 1857 it was bought by one Donald Maclellan (for .1500), who was
married to MacAskill's daughter, but he was sequestrated in 1863.
Soon after, it was bought by the distillery's Glasgow agent, John
Anderson, who invested heavily in it. In spite of the good reputation
Anderson had in the trade, he too was bankrupted in 1879. A year
later the distillery was bought by Roderick Kemp and AG Allan, who
rebuilt it.
Kemp
bought Macallan Distillery in 1892. and Allan merged Talisker with
the Dailuaine Distillery in Speyside in 1898. The latter became part
of DCL in 1925.
The Talisker distillery was partly rebuilt in 1960 after a fire, and its floor
makings were demolished in 1972. It has five stills and continues to
have worm tubs rather than column condensers.
Talisker
has long been available as a single, is highly regarded by
connoisseurs and won a gold medal in the 1993 IWSC. It is now part of
United Distillers' 'Classic Malts' portfolio, and its visitor centre
welcomes over 40,000 people a year.
Prop
@ 10 Years (45.8%): Mid gold in colour, with a pungent, burnt-sticks
nose and a hint of ozone reminiscent of Irish whiskey. It has a big
body, a creamy mouthfeel, a smoky, spicy flavour and a distinctive
black-peppery finish - Derek Cooper memorably described it as the
lava of the Cuillins' (the Cuillins are the dramatic mountains on
Skye).
SMWS @15
Years (64.2%): A rich nose full of hot aromas, like a curry - meaty,
fruity, exotic, with a hint of planed hardwood. With water there was
a rush of fruit and nuts, a dash of vinegar and more than a whiff of
smoke. Smooth, but with a cheerful peppery catch in the finish.
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