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Peated whisky for beginners: a first taste of smoke

A step-by-step route into peated whisky, from unpeated Islay malts to Bowmore, Talisker, Caol Ila and Lagavulin, and what ppm does and doesn't tell you.

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Start with a moderately peated malt such as Bowmore 12 Year Old or Talisker 10 Year Old. If you like the smoke, move on to Caol Ila 12 Year Old or Lagavulin 16 Year Old, then to the heavily peated Ardbeg 10 Year Old or Laphroaig Quarter Cask. You can stop at any step; smoke is a matter of taste, not a test.

Where the smoke comes from

Peat smoke enters whisky before distillation. Malted barley is dried in a kiln, and when peat is burned in that kiln, phenols in the smoke stick to the grain. Distillers measure them as phenol parts per million (ppm) in the malt.

That figure is a rough guide only. Distillation and maturation remove a lot of the phenols, so two whiskies made from malt at the same ppm can taste very different, and an older whisky usually tastes less smoky than a young one from the same malt. Producers rarely print ppm on the label. The figures below are the distilleries’ own malt specifications where they publish one, otherwise commonly cited figures, and none of them is a label fact. Whiskipedia explains the limits of ppm.

The smoke staircase, by peat in the malt: steps 2 to 4 of this guide, in phenol parts per million measured on the malted barley, not the whisky. Step 2, gentle smoke: Talisker 10 Year Old, 20 to 25 ppm for its peated malt, with about a quarter of the mash unpeated; Bowmore 12 Year Old, 25 to 30 ppm. Step 3, middle of the scale: Lagavulin 16 Year Old, about 36 ppm, its usual specification. Step 4, heavily peated: Laphroaig Quarter Cask, 45 to 50 ppm for the malt it floor-malts on site, about a fifth of what it uses; Kilchoman Machir Bay, mostly from malt commonly cited at about 50 ppm; Ardbeg 10 Year Old, 50 to 55 ppm. The step 1 malts, Bunnahabhain 12 Year Old and Bruichladdich The Classic Laddie, are unpeated. Caol Ila 12 Year Old and Ledaig 10 Year Old, also in step 3, have no figure here.

Step 1: Islay without the smoke

Not every Islay whisky is peated. These two use unpeated malt, so you can try the island’s style first.

Bunnahabhain 12 Year Old: £41.39 at Master of Malt. A 46.3% ABV unpeated Islay single malt, bottled without chill-filtration.

Bruichladdich The Classic Laddie Scottish Barley: £51.00 at The Whisky Shop. A 50% ABV unpeated Islay single malt with no age statement, made from Scottish barley.

Step 2: Gentle smoke

Bowmore 12 Year Old: currently unavailable. A 40% ABV Islay single malt. Bowmore specifies its malt at 25 to 30 ppm, and the distillery still malts part of its own barley on traditional floors.

Talisker 10 Year Old: £39.15 at Master of Malt. A 45.8% ABV single malt from the Isle of Skye. Talisker specifies 20 to 25 ppm for its peated malt, which is mixed with about a quarter unpeated malt, and its house style is often described as peppery and coastal. Whiskipedia on Talisker.

Step 3: Middle of the scale

Caol Ila 12 Year Old: £49.95 at Hard To Find Whisky. A 43% ABV Islay single malt from the largest distillery on the island by capacity. Whiskipedia on Caol Ila.

Ledaig 10 Year Old: £39.50 at Master of Malt. A 46.3% ABV peated single malt from the Tobermory distillery on Mull. Ledaig is the name Tobermory uses for its peated spirit.

Lagavulin 16 Year Old: £72.95 at Master of Malt. A 43% ABV Islay single malt whose usual malt specification is about 36 ppm (for a few weeks a year the distillery uses more heavily peated malt). Sixteen years in the cask make it one of the older core peated malts. Whiskipedia on Lagavulin.

Step 4: Heavily peated

Ardbeg 10 Year Old: £40.52 at Master of Malt. A 46% ABV Islay single malt, bottled without chill-filtration. Ardbeg specifies its malt at 50 to 55 ppm.

Laphroaig Quarter Cask: £47.00 at The Whisky Shop. A 48% ABV Islay single malt with no age statement, finished in small quarter casks of about 125 litres, which speed up the wood’s effect. Laphroaig specifies 45 to 50 ppm for the malt it floor-malts on site, about a fifth of what it uses. Whiskipedia on Laphroaig.

Kilchoman Machir Bay: £44.25 at Master of Malt. A 46% ABV Islay single malt, mostly from malt commonly cited as peated to about 50 ppm.

For a wider view, the chart below plots every in-stock peated bottle with a stated ppm against its UK shelf price. Read more in peat level vs price.

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Ways to try it

A few drops of water lower the strength and often make the smoke easier to read. A peated highball, one part whisky to three or four parts cold soda, is another gentle start. Peated malts are often paired with smoked fish, strong cheese or dark chocolate, but these are options, not rules. For more picks across every smoke level, see peated whisky.

Sources and review

Where to go next

Questions

What is the least smoky Islay whisky?
Islay’s unpeated whiskies. Bunnahabhain 12 Year Old and Bruichladdich The Classic Laddie are made from unpeated malt. Among the peated Islay malts, Bowmore’s malt is commonly cited at 25 to 30 ppm, around half the 50 to 55 ppm commonly cited for Ardbeg. Both figures are measured on the malted barley, not the whisky.
Is Lagavulin too smoky for a beginner?
It sits in the middle. Lagavulin 16 Year Old is a 43% ABV Islay single malt whose malt is commonly cited at about 36 ppm, above Bowmore and below Ardbeg. Long maturation tends to soften smoke, so some beginners start there; Talisker 10 Year Old is a gentler option.
Why can peated whisky taste medicinal?
Peat smoke leaves phenolic compounds on the malt. Some, such as cresols, smell like TCP or sticking plasters, while guaiacol smells more like woodsmoke. Laphroaig is often described as the most medicinal of the Islay styles. Whiskipedia on phenols.
What is peat?
Peat is partly decayed vegetation, such as sphagnum moss, heather and grasses, built up over thousands of years in waterlogged bogs. It is cut, dried and burned in the kiln where malted barley is dried, and the smoke gives the grain its peaty phenols. Whiskipedia on peat.

About the author

John Fegan

· Editor

Hailing from the land of haggis and deep-fried Mars bars, John was always going to find his way to whisky. He has run Uisge Beatha since 2015 and Whiskipedia.com since 2020.