Kilchoman 's cask presentation is a bit overwhelming, similar to GlenAllachie, on the shelf. A neverending supply of expensive options. It would be nice to keep it simple

This bottle is $110 here in the US,where I live but I really enjoy the 100% Islay Barley they are very different from all the other bottling from Kilchoman and I think this is a great edition 👍

Perfectly sums up my thoughts on this one. Massive fan of this, and I love how different it is. Cheers Shane. 🥃

Great review Shane. I actually like when Kilchoman ends up less peat dominant as with the 100% Islays, the Casado or the Fino releases because of exactly what you mentioned about the quality shining through. I really liked the 100% Islay 11th Edition and thought the 12th Edition was a little less good. I will definitely pick up the 13th Edition after hearing your review.

Got it a decent price and I am truly looking forward to it.

I really need to get my head out of nether regions and buy this bottle. For some reason I never have and it's been on the radar for years. Unfortunately, I recently spent a similar amount on the Kichoman Fino which doesn't taste significantly different to the Machir Bay.

Thanks for reviewing this whisky, Shane. I'm a fan of Kilchoman but have not had much of the 100% Islay as it always seemed to sell out before I could grab a bottle. Cheers to another great review!

I really loved the Batch 12 even more. Your take on it is so right, it's not that peat level for sure, probably more like 20-25PPM. But boy does that make a balanced product with such flavorful grain notes without being too funky.

I just got a bottle of this last week which I’m looking forward to opening soon (and also a Lagavulin Special Release 2023- they got me!- but we’ll talk about that later) For me, I think the four core range kilchomans are all pretty distinct, 100% for years was a softer more barley focused dram, but like you, I was both excited to see a return to all bourbon maturation in the 100% and also sad to learn it will be the final release with all Buffalo Trace casks. I’ll follow up later with thoughts after I try this one, but regardless, I was glad to snag a bottle.

This is the last 100% Islay to use Buffalo Trace barrels. Going forward, they will be Breckenridge, I think, which might be a massive step down...

Great review, as usual! Lots of really good, detailed information. I really enjoy this bottle - haven't tried this Batch 13, but have 8th and 11th batches. Very visceral, and I like that they generally stick to mostly bourbon casks to allow the distillate to shine through. For me, it allows that soft farmyard funk from Kilchoman to be showcased.

Great review mate :) I might look out for this in the future, but right now, I enjoy the Machir Bay, the Sanaig & Loch Gorm.

Nice review Shane… although I appreciate this 100% ex-bourbon, I preferred batch 12 with a bit of sherry. But I enjoy both of these more than their Machir Bay. Cheers 🥃

Thanks for your review mate. Out of the batches I have had batch 5 was easily my favourite one. All gone now of course but I remember there being more peat influence compared to later batches, even though still at 20ppm. Perhaps that is due to it being younger 🥃

Nice review, Shane! When comes to peated malt whisky I think nowadays Kilchoman is at the very top among the Islay distilleries. Yes, their whisky is pricey, but the quality is all there plus all other Islay distilleries have their prices at the higher end. My favorite Kilchoman expressions so far are Loch Gorm 2020 and a single 10 yo ex-bourbon cask which was out-of-this-world good :) Haven't had 100% Islay yet but I've been eyeing the 12th edition for quite some time. It has some sherry casks in the blend, but clearly I don't have a problem with that :) Luckily in Bulgaria Kilchoman is relatively cheaper than in most of the Europe so I can have a bottle of it for the equivalent of roughly £56-£57. The 13th edition hasn't made it to our market yet. Cheers!

Hi Shane, haven’t had the 100% Islay but after this glowing review it’s now definitely on my list. Slàinte Shane 🥃

I'm really of two minds when it comes to Kilchoman. I love the Machir Bay and the Sanaig, in fact I think it's where anyone should start these days when it comes to peated Islay Scotch. Quality and value are phenomenal, they simply taste delicious.I also like the Loch Gorm and the PX edition and of course the whole farm distillery concept is great. But...the portfolio is so labyrinthine and overextended and there's so much really just mediocre overpriced stuff among that myriad of releases, I find it tiring and an actual turn-off. And I can't figure out (well, now perhaps I can) why higher priced releases like the 100% Islay are less convincing than "core core range" stuff, or often just don't quite seem to live up to what they could be. Likewise, the price for the 16 year old was simply ridiculous and I don't care whether the elven king personally worked the floor maltings for that one. So, I really hope that with higher ages more available they will severely streamline their portfolio, establish a sound quality hierarchy and offer age statement bottles at reasonable prices. I will not pay €100 or more for a 12 year old, that's for sure. Anyway, thanks for reviewing this really interesting distillery.

The 100% Islay ist around 20ppm (edit: sorry, you already mentioned that in the video. Should have watched till the end before commenting 😅)... about the future supply of barley: Kilchoman said that they are going to import mainland malt in the short term but they are also going to build their own malting facility eventually. I personally prefer the 100% Islay to the MB... especially if it's matured exclusively in exB.

Hi Whisky Lock! I agree with everything you said about the comparison with Machir Bay! It’s not quite double the price of machir bay in NZ so we’re a bit lucky here…. I love this whisky! I just enjoyed a dram of this while watching your review! And first time i hear the fire/less peaty story! Always learning! Top of my top 3…. your channel! As you see i have no clue why I’m commenting other than for the sake of commenting …. Cheers!

Nice review I have subbed to you very nice and thorough review of this whisky. I'm not a big peat guy I have and enjoy the laugavlin 16 is this comparable to that if so I'm in if I can find it. Hope to see more from you. Enjoy!!

What an excellent review, so much info I had no idea about. Much appreciated dear Shane. Thanks you 🙏 cheers, S.

This is spectacular for me!! I love it! I am unhappy knowing casks will be changing. I’d pay any day for such high integrity bottling! Outstanding! This beauty did a fabulous dance on my palette!! Such a treat!! Terrific video!!

Hi Shane ! Kilchoman is good distilery , i like sanaig , machir bay , px , 100% isla.... Slante !

I think it’s pricey at £75 , it’s very good but I’d buy Sanaig at £55 whilst I agree Machir Bay is very good for the price at around £45. Just finished a bottle of machir bay cask strength which was excellent but my fav kilchoman is Loch Gorm which unfortunately at £80 is too expensive for me to keep in my core range bottles . Lovely whisky from Kilchoman 😊

Thanks for the review. And there is an opportunity to conduct a test of the expanding line in the future: Kilchoman Genesis Peating Stage 3; Kilchoman 100% Islay Armagnac Double Cask; Kilchoman Madeira Cask 5 Years; Kilchoman 100% Islay Bourbon Single Cask; Kilchoman Cognac Cask Matured; Kilchoman Fino Sherry Cask Matured; Kilchoman PX Sherry Cask Matured; Kilchoman Calvados Double Cask; Kilchoman 16 Years...😅

I haven't tried this one yet, but it seems like an interesting dram. For me Kilchoman is up there with Ardnamurchan and Arran as one of my favourite distilleries. I have the Machir Bay, Sanaig, and Casado and of those 3 the Sanaig is my favourite. Cheers!

Thanks for the review Shane. Along with a few Single Cask Ex-Bourbon matured bottlings, the 100% Islay has been my only exposure to Kilchoman. I first visited the distillery back in 2015 and the only kosher expression (no non-kosher wine Sherry casks) they had on hand was a single Cask straight from the barrel sample and the 100% Islay 4th Edition. This 4th edition was a bit rough around the edges but I instantly fell in love with its slightly smoky burnt sweet and salty creamy porridge flavour. The following year, the 5th edition turned up here in Israel. It became one of my all time favourite drams and I think I bought perhaps 10 bottles in all, over 3 years until stocks disappeared. I still have bottles of the 5th, 6th, 7th, and 9th (that being the last edition which was 100% Ex-Bourbon). Something you might find amusing. I used to begin some of my whisky tasting "masterclass" evening with a party trick. I would line up the the 5th, 6th, 7th and 9th editions and ask my wife to blindfold me. Then to rearrange the glasses and hand me one at a time. It was really not that difficult to tell them apart and it really impressed the audience.😁 The 5th being the heaviest and creamiest and the rest all in descending order to the very lighted. I am so looking forward to trying this 13th Edition, being the first one since the 9th which is 100% Ex-Bourbon and therefore kosher. (According to most Rabbonim. See below). I had never heard the story before about the fire and why their own floor maltings were 25% compared to the 50% peated malted barley from Port Ellen. I always wondered why it was only 25%. Something which I may have mentioned in previous comment, that this 13th edition will be the last to use exclusively Ex-Bourbon barrels from Buffalo Trace, as they have now switched to Breckenridge distillery in Denver, Colorado, Bourbon barrels. This is excellent news for the whisky loving Orthodox Jewish community around the world. Most Kashrus Rabbis (like me), have a problem with Buffalo Trace (and other Sazerac owned) whiskies, and some even say that the problem extends to Scotch whisky which was 100% matured in Ex-Buffalo Trace barrels. (It's a complicated story which has nothing to do with non-kosher wine).

Informative review as always.

🥃👍🏻😁