Review #722 - Kilkerran Heavily Peated Batch 10

Glengyle's production is already relatively limited, due to the fact that it's a small production facility and it only operates for roughly 3 months per year (it shares staff with Springbank, which operates the other 9 months). Even more limited is Glengyle's production of heavily peated whisky, as the bulk of their distillate is just lightly peated; still, they bottle 2 batches of Kilkerran heavily peated single malt per year. Here's batch 10, which arrived in the first half of 2024.

The heavily peated single malt from Glengyle uses barley that has a phenol content of roughly 45ppm, similar to that of many of the famous Islay distilleries. They mature this distillate predominantly in ex-bourbon casks, though a small amount also goes into sherry and other types of casks. The bottle doesn't state this specifically, but some digging online points to roughly 90% ex-bourbon casks and 10% ex-sherry casks for this 10th batch of the Heavily Peated release.

Kilkerran Heavily Peated Batch 10

Scotland/Campbeltown - Single Malt

Price: USD 90 (2025)

Age Statement: NAS

Strength: 57.8% ABV

Cask Makeup: Ex-bourbon and sherry casks

Details: Not chill filtered, no color added; batch 10, bottled February 22, 2024

Tasting Methodology: Reviewed 3 times over 4 months; bottles at 90%, 80%, and 70% fill levels at times of review. Tasted in a nosing glass each time, rested 15+ minutes

Nose: A juxtaposition of flavors - charcoal, peat smoke, ash, and a bit of farmy funk, but behind that, it's sweet cream, lemon curd, icing sugar, quite buttery. Soft fruit like star fruit or even passionfruit arrive; we get accents of malty grain and a mineral like slate.

Palate: Lemon-lime soda, sweet cream, and buttery vanilla are balanced by strong fizzy peat and charcoal. Buttery croissant flavors grow stronger later, and we get more fruits like kiwi and pineapple. There are nice mineral notes in the background as well; this has a medium-thick mouthfeel.

Finish: Mineral and peat smoke linger, accented by bright notes of lemon, lime, creamy vanilla, and sea salt. Softer notes like melon and warm bread come with time; it gets even more buttery in the aftertaste, both in flavor and taste. It's a medium-long finish.

Final Note: This is a very nice peated single malt from Glengyle and Kilkerran. We haven't tried all of the batches of their Heavily Peated line, but in our limited experience, these batches do seem to be getting better and better over time. This is our favorite so far; we love the way that the smoky notes are challenged by the sweet, creamy, fruity flavors from the spirit and casks. Tons of light fruit, creamy vanilla, and a good baking side as well - this whisky is a treat with a lot of nuance.

Value for Kilkerran's Heavily Peated series is pretty good. It isn't necessarily a cheap bottle at about $90, but this is one of the easier bottles to find from Campbeltown, and you are getting plenty of complexity and hefty strength for that money.

Our Rating: 7.9 / 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: 6.99

About Us: We're a husband and wife review team living in the Midwest United States. Generally, our reviews and tasting notes will be a compilation of both of our experiences with a whisky over several tasting sessions.