Bowmore, Captivo Collection Oak Voyage

There's a wonderfully savoury quality to Oak Voyage, a Bowmore that seems more interested in smouldering than smoking. It starts relatively restrained, but give it time and darker, slightly eccentric details begin to emerge: burnt sugar, polished wood and something almost charred around the edges. On the palate it becomes richer and more comforting, with the feeling of tarte tatin eaten beside a barbecue, sweetness rubbing shoulders with smoke, meatiness and citrus. But, as with the best Bowmore, it's the way everything lingers that really draws you back. The finish is excellent: long, soft, dry and gently smoky, with flashes of citrus cutting through roasted coffee and cocoa. There's maturity here, but also plenty of energy. A complex, contemplative Bowmore that rewards taking your time over.

Bowmore has this remarkable ability to be both delicate and direct at the same time, and Oak Voyage very much typifies it: distinctly brooding and coastal, but gently floral and aromatic. The dried fruit notes aren't what you would expect from oloroso, being lighter and riper rather than heavily dry and tannic. It's a whisky you can explore and find hidden layers within; that's for sure.

Bowmore has called this Oak Voyage with good reason. There's a lot of cask influence right at the top of the palate. You can catch it on the nose alongside those sweet, coastal aromas, but it really hits at the front of the palate. Oddly enough, it then turns into quite a delicate Islay dram. Those sherry influences take charge, and all of a sudden you've got a sweet dark fruit crumble, albeit with a bit of charring on top. It is typically Bowmore in that sense: it can both hit you hard and sooth your soul, all in one mouthful.