The fact that we have this incredible product in stock at all is a testament to the great relationships K&L has built over the last several decades. Typically, K&L gets a handful of this yearly expression - maybe 12-18 bottles, but timing was just so that the distributor needed to move the entire stock before the end of their fiscal year, so we swooped in and grabbed it. For those not in the know, Kilkerran is the sister distillery to the famous Springbank which is just up the road. This whisky starts with barley hand malted to the same specifications as the sister distillery and dried on light to medium peat before being trucked down the road to be distilled on the antique equipment that was salvage for the creation of Kilkerran back in 2003. The resulting whiskies is one of Scotland's most delicious and unique offering a layered complexity that's lacking in most modern malts. We simply haven't been able to meaningfully sell this product ever before and it would have typically sold out in only minutes. Now we've got a nice little chunk here, but it's not as if this whisky will be available. The little distillery only makes 60,000 liters a year making it one of Scotland's tiniest. But seriously, if you're even semi-interested in Springbank, this should be an obvious buy as it's easily the closest experience to the still white-hot traditional distiller up the road and offers its own unique character. Let's have a go. The color is a beautiful deep copper (1.0) contradicting perceptions around the relatively low age statement. Remember that's a minimum age, not a definite age. The nose offers deep rich underpinnings of Campbeltown peat framing an absolutely pungent array of zesty citrus and cooked orchard fruit. The key hallmark of Kilkerran Bourbon something that I've loved ever since its old "on the way" tubes, is its distinct mineral character offering a chiseled saline note that completes the package perfectly, adding a depth modern malt almost never delivers. The palate continues with the dense coastal character offering an electrifying craggy wave weathered stone, beautiful quince and bitter orange marmalade, sweet and rich malt with a ponderous dark smoke connecting each element. Gone are some of the cereal character of previous bourbon expression replaced with complex array of various orchard fruits on the palate. This is exactly the sort of thing I get geeked about. Not only is it totally delicious, but it’s simply not something that can be replicated anywhere else in the world. This is truly one of the great single malts and anyone waiting on the sideline will be kicking themselves when they see its gone.