Review #111 - Creag Isle 12 Year
'Big-Box Retailer' Scotch Series: Part 5 of 6
Back to the Highlands for our next stop with these Total Wine Scotch brands. Here is the Creag Isle 12 Year, a peated single malt that would fall into the 'Island' subcategory of the Highlands. As usual, the distillery is undisclosed, but peated distillate from an island distillery does narrow down the options a bit.
This is presented at an unusual 42.2% ABV, still well below the strength we would like to see for a quality presentation. It spends 12 years in American oak, presumably ex-bourbon barrels.
Creag Isle 12 Year
Scotland/Highlands - Single Malt
Current Locally Available Price: USD 50 (2023)
Age Statement: 12 Years
Strength: 42.2% ABV
Cask Makeup: American oak
Tasting Methodology: Reviewed 1 time; bottle at 30% fill level at time of review. Tasted in a Glencairn glass, rested 10-15 minutes
Nose: Somewhat mellow to start, a mild sherry fruit influence, as well as some sour candy. Quite soft overall, just a hint of smoke starting out, although it grows with time - never past a mild to medium influence, though. There's some sweet icing sugar, but not a lot of complexity.
Palate: A little bit more of a barbecue peat kick on the palate, which has a medium-thin mouthfeel. It's slightly more dry and savory now, with sauce, peppery peat, and a mild reddish fruit. There's a little bit of coastal salt later on, and it's a rounded, slightly muted experience overall.
Finish: Medium-length finish, with mostly peat smoke hanging around. There is a little bit of sweetness from oaky vanilla, and just a hint of charred wood, but this is still pretty soft and mild.
Final Note: This is quite restrained - the flavors aren't bad, but the low bottling strength is really holding it back. It's pretty simple and relatively easy-sipping, but the theme from these big-box bottlings continues: not many interesting flavor notes, not a lot of complexity to hold your attention. The price of this Creag Isle is climbing as well, meaning that its value is eroding - it's about $50 in our area at this point. There are a number of other whiskies at that price point that offer a bit more complexity and stronger flavor.
Our Average Rating: 5.0 / 10
In the current whisky landscape of increasing prices and variable quality, we've added a value rating to our reviews that relates to the score and the available pricing of each whisky. This roughly equates to a 0-10 scale; no reviews so far have exceeded a score of 10, although it is technically possible for the formula to produce a value rating higher than 10 with a high enough score and low enough price.
Value Rating: 5.61
