You are reading a single comment by @Gewürzt and its replies.
Click here to read the full conversation.
-
I don't know what your budget is but if you like a mellow peat then older Islay whiskies are the way to go as the phenolic strength decreases over time. Also ppm labels are completely irrelevant to the peatiness of the whisky itself as that only describes what the ppm of the malt is when it arrives at the distillery, the process of mashing and distilling has a huge impact on the phenols in the the final spirit. Bruichladdich Octomore (which i'm a big fan of btw) is famed for its high ppm but it's also triple and sometimes quadruple distilled, which massively decreases the phenols. So like all things, the only way to truly know is to taste.
Gewürzt
I'm currently drinking peaty Benriach (Speyside) but think I prefer the less peated Islay stuff like Bunnahabhain. What else is out there?
Wikipedia gives: "Bunnahabhain makes much lighter whiskies which are generally lightly peated. Bowmore, which started business in 1779, produces a whisky which is well balanced, using a medium-strong peating level (25 ppm) but also using sherry-cask maturation. The Kilchoman distillery started production in late 2005; in location it is unlike the other distilleries, which are all by the sea. The newest distillery is Ardnahoe, the island's ninth, which opened in 2019."