The Empress, Peallach and some English Rye
- Mr Dram Man
- 12 minutes ago
- 2 min read
This month’s Mr Dram Man selection brings together three distinct and dynamic whiskies — from smoky coastal drams to an elegant, lightly peated blend with real maturity. Each bottle offers a unique lens into the diverse world of independent bottlers, and we’re excited to share them with you.
That Boutique-y Whisky Company – 8 Year Old English Rye
An English rye with a twist. Distilled from a high-rye mash bill, matured in toasted French oak, and blended with a hint of peated English single malt aged in ex-Islay casks. It’s a bold dram with charm to spare. The people at TBWC never fail to deliver when it comes to their bottling and this is another edition to their core bottling range. 87/100
Nose: Hints of marzipan, vanilla, chocolate, and cracked black pepper with a delicate thread of peat.
Palate: Spicy rye bread, raisin fudge, wild berries, coffee, and a gentle honeyed sweetness.
Finish: Balanced and long with a peppery kick and a whisper of smoke.
Chorlton – 8 Year Old Peallach (Tobermory Distillery)
I wanted to find something peaty this month with a kick to it and I believe I have found. A limited single cask Peallach release (just 293 bottles), this heavily-peated single malt from Tobermory distillery was aged in a Rioja wine cask and bottled at natural cask strength. It’s intense, smoky, and dripping with flavour. This bottle is punchy, and a brilliant showcase of what Tobermory are beginning to create. 90/100
Nose: Ash, menthol, clove, , and orange peel.
Palate: Thick and oily. Charred fruits, black treacle, and a punch of coastal smoke.
Finish: Long, tarry, and rich with smoky spice and red fruit echoes.
Tarot: The Empress – 17 Year Old Blended Whisky (North Star Spirits)
We have tasted the first two in the series: The Fool and The Magician, both very good but the Fool really taking the biscuit for now. The third in North Star’s Tarot series, The Empress is a lightly peated blended whisky made up of 32% malt and 68% grain, matured for 17 years in a refill butt and bottled at a gentle 43.5%. This dram is more refined but still surprises with sharp initial notes and deep nutty complexity. This one is nice, but its completely different to the other two, which is good in its own way, but does make it hard to compare. 87/100
Nose: Malty sweetness, hazelnuts, honey, and a touch of peat.
Palate: Salted butter, rich oak, dried apricots, and a lingering nutty character.
Finish: Medium length with a waxy hazelnut texture and soft sweetness.
These three whiskies form a spectrum — rye spice, coastal peat, and refined elegance — showcasing just how wide-ranging and rewarding whisky exploration can be. Pour, sip, and savour!
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English Rye 8yr old
Peallach 8yr old
The Empress 17yr old
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