This Bowmore Tempest Batch IV has been part of my collection for a long time. I’m slowly working my way through the bottle and cherishing every dram. Because to me, this is what a Bowmore has to be like.
It has matured on first fill bourbon casks and bottled at cask strength. It’s drawn from a cask from their No. 1 Vaults, for what it’s worth. I think it doesn’t matter if it’s from the warehouse on Islay or from a warehouse on the mainlands, but it’s a nice story.
I also have the 5th and 6th batch, they’re all different in terms of flavour. This 4th batch may be my favourite, here are my notes:
Fresh citrus and maritime notes, a bit of iodine with a wave of tropical fruits and barley.
The palate is fresh and vibrant, sweet and crisp, with notes of vanilla ice cream, kiwi, oak and salt.
The finish has a fresh and sweet note of raspberry and lemons, accompanied by tropical fruits like pineapple and kiwi. A second layer of sea salt and seaweed, with just a whiff of peated barley. It feels like a sunny October month on a cold beach.
The fresh and maritime notes are perfectly in balance with the sweeter tropical side. Exactly the character that Bowmore tries to achieve in many of their expressions. It’s sad that they chose to discontinue the series, especially when considering the great price point. The new Vault 01 series comes close in terms of flavour, but it also comes at almost 1.5 times of the price of the Tempest series. Hmm…
Maybe you can guide us the way to a newer expression from Bowmore, which captures their character perfectly. Feel free to share your suggestions!