Bowmore - Love It/Hate It

[Ganga]

It seems to me that I only run into people that are very fond or have a strong revulsion to Bowmore offerings, never someone that was indifferent to the whisky. So, do you Love It, Hate It or are you just indifferent?

[johan brugge]

Well, I'll be the first then. I don't like it. I had several different bottles of Bowmore but I didn't encounter one that I really love. Sorry.

[lockejn]

I haven't tried it yet. It'll be another few weeks before I plan to. I think I'm going to like it as I understand it's less peaty than the heavy Islays. I haven't had any of those recently, either, but my recollection is that they were a bit overboard for me. I do enjoy Talisker immensely, though.

[Deactivated Member]

Did I inspire this? I've tried hard to like Bowmore, although I've had no IB's or other unusual expressions. It just rubs me the wrong way. I'd never call it bad whisky, though--too many people whose opinions I respect think very highly of it. Just not my cuppa.

[Minnesota Malt]

Never tried it... Would like to, but I don't see myself trying it anytime soon. There are a lot other SMs that I would like to try first. I'm a big fan of Islay, but I guess it is further down on my list only because I have heard more negatives than positives about Bowmore in general.

How would you guys describe its general characteristics? I have heard it is not as peaty as other Islays, but it has a sour touch to it...?

[wolpertinger]

I tried several standard OBs and didn't like them. I noticed FWP in 2 cases.

But then I had a SMWS bottling - I think it was 3.54 - which IMHO was one of the best malts ever

[dramtastic]

Although I wrote in another post I prefered Bowmore 12 to Ardbeg 10 and Laph 10 that'd didn't mean I love it, I like it.

So I'm in the another camp, I like it.

[Reggaeblues]

Never tried it... Would like to, but I don't see myself trying it anytime soon. There are a lot other SMs that I would like to try first. I'm a big fan of Islay, but I guess it is further down on my list only because I have heard more negatives than positives about Bowmore in general.

How would you guys describe its general characteristics? I have heard it is not as peaty as other Islays, but it has a sour touch to it...?

Yes, not as peaty as other Islays, though I had an Ob 1989 cask strength a couple of years back that seemed well peated - enough to give the Laga 12 a run for its money...but the first time I had Bowmore, in my whisky infancy, I was struck by a herbal flavour that reminded me of hheather and lavender...and another feature I have found in no other whisky is a sort of "mineral" stoney flavour, which when combined with the lavender makes for a unique experience. Some call it "perfumey", and some loathe it.

Jim Murray hated the "old" Darkest. Found it totally off balance. I loved it. The new Darkest and 18 yo. are much more toffeeish, perhaps more "novice friendly" and accessible...I really enjoyed the freebies I had of them at Whisky Live, but the old Darkest, the old 17YO, and a couple of IB's I've had, had those unique to Bowmore qualities that I love, though it'll never be a staple of mine like, say, Ardbeg.

[Ardbeg311]

I haven't really cared for most of the Bowmores that I have tried. I have had a number of bottles that were supposed to be enjoyable (e.g. 17yo, 18yo), but that ended up not doing much for me. On the other hand, I have always found the 8yo a little tiger and pleasant, but I suspect the price is influencing my enjoyment at some level. It is simply better than most of the other budget whiskies around here. I might feel differently about the brand if I had had more of the older expressions.

[borgom]

Ganga, we (well at least I) need a "love IB's but hate OB's" option. I've had one fantastic IB which is enough to show me that Bowmore has some great quality. I'll be buying more IB's. The OB's on the other hand are over filtered and over coloured in my opinion, which is bad enough before you even consider the perfume issue of a few years ago.

[talisker10]

I went for the take it or leave it. I have grown to dislike the Legend and McClelland's Isla..but did like the 12 back in 2008. I don't expect to be buying anymore Bowmore unless the 12 comes along at some really low price.

[Aidan]

I love some of it. It can be really great. I think when it's good, it's the best there is.

[bcrossan]

I have not had a chance to try any Bowmore OBs but have been considering the 12 or maybe 15 as my next purchase. But I am nervous based on what I am seeing here.

With the Islays I have really liked all of the Ardbeg, Laga, Laphroaig, and Caol Ila I have tried. The only 2 I wasn't really a fan of were McClelland's Islay and Black Bottle. They just tasted a little cheap to me, go figure because they are relatively, and just didn't have the taste of the others. Based on this what should I expect from Bowmore?

[talisker10]

McClelland's Islay is Bowmore..5 or 6 yo. If you don't mind spending $45 at your Austin Spec's you may want to give the 12 a try. It is better. I would not spend the nearly $100 on the 18..I haven't had it, but from what I have read it is nearly as good as the 12. For what it's worth, Serge at whiskyfun.com rates the current OB 12 at 85 points and the current OB 18 at 75 points.

[bcrossan]

McClelland's Islay is Bowmore..5 or 6 yo. If you don't mind spending $45 at your Austin Spec's you may want to give the 12 a try. It is better. I would not spend the nearly $100 on the 18..I haven't had it, but from what I have read it is nearly as good as the 12. For what it's worth, Serge at whiskyfun.com rates the current OB 12 at 85 points and the current OB 18 at 75 points.

Didn't realize that McClellands is Bowmore. Does the peat flavor come out more once it has been aged to 12 years? That is why I didn't like McClellands because the peat flavor just wasnt enough for me in that one

[talisker10]

It's been well over a year since I had a bottle of the 12 and that was in Sweden, so I can't be sure it's the exactly the same...but I assume it is since other brands (Laph for example) were the same. To my taste, Bowmore in general doesn't taste peaty in the sense of Laphroaig or Ardbeg peaty. It's more smoke than peat. However from what I recall the 12 is peatier in taste than Legend or McClelland's and is smoother, more refined, less flowery.

If Bowmore 12 were $35 or less instead of $45 I might actually pick up a bottle of it, but at $45 there are just too many I like better. Hard to say whether you will like the 12, but I can say it is definitely different than the McClelland's.

[The Third Dram]

I voted, "Love it."

Why?

Well, for one, I find most of the Bowmores I've tried to be truly unique whiskies. That inimitable smoky quality (undoubtedly due to the percentage of on-site malted barley incorporated as well as the sandy nature of the peat burned), not to mention the manner in which it melds with the sweet-sour characteristic of the distillate, makes for a taste quite different from the other Islay offerings.

Then there's the maturation aspect. In my view, Bowmore is a spirit that can gain enormously from ageing into its mid teens and beyond. My clear favourites in the older series were the 21 and 25-year olds, though I also held a soft spot for the 15-year old Mariner and 17-year old. The new 18-year old displays a superb degree of complexity, and I'm still coming to grips with its full spectrum of flavours ½-way through the bottle.

Cask finishing and maturation in specialty casks are other areas in which Bowmore seems to shine. As regards the first type of regimen, the older version of the Darkest may have been a little schizophrenic at times, but it was certainly not - bottle variation issues aside - dull. I think the newer edition is even better, owing to a greater sense of integration. Concerning the second, each and every limited edition 16-year old cask strength bottling I've tasted has been noteworthy, with the 1991 Port Matured being particularly outstanding.

I agree that Bowmore tends to splinter opinions. But this is all part of the fun!

[SoMK]

Maybe I've not tried enough Bowmore OBs to forge a definite opinion but from the 5 I tried, it wasn't very pleasant. Especially Bowmore 18. I found it terribly salty. Interesting but even blindfold, I'd go for any lagavulin instead.
I persevere because I'm curious and I think it's an interesting and different whisky but by choice so far, if I had to choose between several bottles, I'd pick something else 9 times out of 10.
Just not my cup of tea, that's all.

[Liechtenstein]

I've only tried the Bowmore 18 and I don't really like it.

However, I've found that a few drops of B-18 added to any other whisky improves that dram's taste remarkably.

[scotchdrinker]

I have never tried but, I am always interested in trying something new and different even if the reviews have been mixed. I will have to find a place that I can try b/c I am not going to but a bottle with not ever trying it and so many mixed feelings.

[Mr Fjeld]

Love it.

[Ganga]

Did I inspire this? I've tried hard to like Bowmore, although I've had no IB's or other unusual expressions. It just rubs me the wrong way. I'd never call it bad whisky, though--too many people whose opinions I respect think very highly of it. Just not my cuppa.

Inspiration? Yes. But because you have stated that it is a love it/hate it whisky. I myself had never encountered anyone that was indifferent about Bowmore. I've typically found the opinions to drift strongly one direction or the other. Mostly I was looking to see if some people really were indifferent about this whisky.

As they say, no wrong answer here. Strictly an opinion thing.

[pkt77242]

I voted Hate It, though it is more of a passionate dislike. I have only had three Bowmores (1 OB, and 2 IB and all of them Late 80's to mid 90's). All three of them were overly perfumey (I will avoid FWP here but I would describe it is the old lady who sat in front of you at church and who had obviosly lost her sense of smell and sprayed on way to much perfume). I have heard the some of the older Bowmores are phenmonal and would be willing to try them but don't really want to spend the money on them without tasting in advance.

Sean

[Wave]

Bowmore is my least favorite of all Islays. Like Highland Park OB's I'm not a fan of Bowmore OB's other than their old 21yo. I've had better Bowmore IB's (Signatory and Dewer Rattray) minus the caramel.


Cheers!