Peat Monster Reserve Edition Review

Released in 2008, the Peat Monster Reserve Edition was a celebration of its 5th anniversary. PM originally launched in 2004 as a mass-market version of a private bottling they did for Park Avenue Liquor in NYC. The PAL release was simply named Monster. The original Monster was a cask strength blend of Caol Ila and Ardmore and that Ardmore component stayed a part of PM for a while. But as sources and supply change, so do the recipes of whiskies like this.

And speaking of recipes, this wasn’t just a bigger bottle, this limited release had its own recipe built around the original Peat Monster available at the time. Crafted from 81% original Peat Monster, 17% Laphroaig and 2% of their unique Highland Malt Blend, this is a whisky that comes through like a punchy beauty that needs to be experienced to fully understand.

Peat Monster Reserve Edition – Details and Tasting Notes

Whiskey Details

Region: Scotland

Distiller: Various (Caol Ila, Laphroaig, Ardmore, “Highland Malt” (60% Clynelish, 20% Dailuaine, 20% Teaninich))
Mash Bill: 100% Malted Barley
Blender: Compass Box
Blend: The Peat Monster (81%), Laphroaig  (17%), Highland Malt Blend (2%)
Cask: Refill Hogshead, Hybrid Barrels (ex-Bourbon w/ French Oak Heads)
Age: NAS
ABV: 48.9%

Non-Chill Filtered | Natural Color

Batch: 5th Anniversary
Bottles: 5,300

Price: NA – Auction, Specialty Store or Private Seller

Tasting Notes

EYE
Pale straw

NOSE
Hay-like malt, oak, honey, smoke, vanilla saltwater taffy, green apples, saline, graham, pears, lemon and a touch of burnt plastic.

PALATE
Hay-like malt, dried orchard fruit, smoke, honey, vanilla saltwater taffy, green apples, saline, graham, pears, lemon and light notes of tropical fruit, oak and plastic.

FINISH
Long -> Smoke, malt and vanilla saltwater taffy.

BALANCE, BODY and FEEL
Great sense of balance, full round body and a nice oily feel.

Peat Monster Reserve Edition – Overall

Aroma is a sharp, crisp, honied-fruit-meets-coastal-bonfire profile with some sweet (candy and dessert) notes popping through; Palate is like chewing on some honey salt water taffy on a beach after eating some BBQ and I love the way the sharp coastal presentation weaves through with some of the warmer fruity sweet notes; Finish is lightly sweet but mostly coastal, sharp and smoky.

The more I have of this, the more I enjoy it. This is a solid whisky through and through – a great limited edition.

Peat Monster Reserve Edition – Final Thoughts and Score

Elegant, crisp and flavorful with deep coastal and smoke notes mixing with a complex sweet character ranging from candy to pastry/dessert to fruit. The description of it being so sharp and crisp makes it sound cold and lifeless like a rocky beach in winter, but there’s a warmth to it. A subtle smile-inducing warmth that’s more like a rocky beach in late spring.

My favorite part of the Peat Monster Reserve Edition is the way it holds a nice bit of complex fruit that sits as the perfect companion to the smoke, earthy malt, coastal and other, more decadent, sweet notes. There’s even a nice touch of oak found in here that helps to give this 5th-anniversary release a wonderful character all its own in the CBPM line.

SCORE: 4/5

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