High Coast Distillery, previous Box Distillery, has released Archipelago as an exclusive bottling for Viking Line Whisky Fair every year since 2015. The bottling is around 1000 bottles and can only be bought onboard Viking Line.
The Archipelago Baltic Sea 2019 is made from 100 percent peated whisky at 40 ppm. The whisky has been matured in 200 litres bourbon cask for 5,42 years and has then been given a finish in 40 litres new American oak for almost 18 months, which makes it 6,91 years old. It is bottled at 54,5 ABV. The outturn was 1023 bottles. You can read all the details here (in Swedish).
Peat! Wow, there is a lot of peat on the nose at first. Then the whisky appears to be more smooth. Apricot, orange peel and fudge. Lots of spices and some oakiness as well. Smooth and peaty on the palate. Orange, fudge and ashes. The finish is dry. Black pepper, salt, ashes and peanut shells. The peat is well integrated and takes cover in the background.
My score: nose 21 / palate 22 / finish 21 / balance 22 = 86
Thanks, Carina!
-Tone
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