Elizabeth “Bessie” Williamson, female distillery manager on Islay a long time ago. You know which distillery, I’m sure. For those who don’t, the label also says (Lp).
Theoretically this new Williamson 2010 bottled by The Whisky Jury contains a teaspoon of whatever, making it a blended malt whisky. Two sister casks were released at the same time, one being a common release, the other exclusive to retailer Wine4You.
Williamson (Lp) 2010 (52,2%, The Whisky Jury 2020, refill barrel, 230 btl.)
Nose: plenty of warm smoky notes with the typical mercurochrome and bandages. Tarry ropes and seaweed. Sweet apples and a hint of vanilla biscuit in the background. Leather saddle, as well as some farmy notes (stables). A subtle whiff of oil paint as well.
Mouth: quite oily and full of character. More iodine, seaweed, smoked kippers and brine. It gets rounder with hints of almonds and sesame. Sooty notes with a touch of cough syrup. Brine and tapenade.
Finish: long, coming back to the drier leathery notes, with liquorice and brine in the very end, as well as some smoldering peat.
Excellent Laffie, deeply smoky and coastal, with a nice farmy touch. Bottled at a good moment, showing plenty of intensity but no ‘disturbing’ youth. Slightly more unique than the sister cask, I’d say. Around € 80, check The Whisky Jury for retailers.
And now the sister cask…
Williamson (Lp) 2010 (53,1%, The Whisky Jury for Wine4You 2020, refill barrel, 225 btl.)
Nose: very similar, clearly sisters. I’d say there is an extra touch of fresh pencil shavings, as well as a light lactic note. It’s just a little cleaner, more towards citric fruits with less of the biscuity undertone. A nice hint of mezcal, which underlines the more straightforward smokiness.
Mouth: again difficult to set apart. Here as well I get a slightly raw hint of mezcal, which mixes nicely with the coastal and medicinal side. Sweet grains. Smoked lemons. Warm peat and ashes. More leathery notes and a lightly bitter, herbal edge this time.
Finish: quite long, probably more intensely smoky and pure than the other cask, which also means less complex.
Again: very good spirit, bottled at an interesting point in time. Slightly more medicinal and focused perhaps, but no farmy touches. Around € 80, exclusively from Wine4You.
Score: 87/100