Kirkland Islay Single Malt
2021 NAS Costco Bottling | 50% ABV
It’s fun raising eyebrows
Once in a while, when hosting a tasting with friends, I’ll slip something into the lineup to mess with people’s heads. Something that seemingly shouldn’t be there; an alcoholic oddity.
With blind tastings it’s easy enough. Maybe among the single cask rarities or the hard-to-find (genuinely) limited editions, there will be a blend from the 1950s or 1970s to get people scratching their heads. Or a modern and genuinely intriguing blend from an outfit like Thompson Bros.
Occasionally I throw a real ringer in the mix like a Havana Club matured in an ex-Islay cask – is it whisky? Is it something else? Two people got that right last time, which was pretty impressive.
I partly do it because it’s fun (and I clearly like to gently torture people as they grapple with what the hell they are actually drinking), but it’s also a great opportunity for all of us to have our expectations challenged and our eyes opened to potential new avenues of exploration.
When the tasting isn’t blind it’s a slightly different scenario. People see what’s coming when they look at the bottles lined up and spot the one that doesn’t make sense – the WTF Whisky as I like to think of it.
One such misfit is the subject of this review. And when the name Kirkland gets equal billing with the likes of Gordon and MacPhail, SMWS and anything from Campbeltown or Islay, eyebrows are duly raised. Anyone that is unfamiliar with the whisky politely inquires as to the state of my sanity. Those in the know, not so much.
For the Kirkland Islay Single Malt is that most rare and wonderful of things – a genuine bargain in the world of whisky. It could even be said to be underpriced – which surely makes it an endangered species.
At a price point of $39 (£31 based on the exchange rate as I write), it is not only a rarity, but also an anomaly. Single malt scotch simply isn’t priced that low in the USA. And, quite frankly, most of us would be pretty wary of one that was. Obviously it would be underwhelming, unremarkable and devoid of character. It would be watery and it would definitely weigh in at only 40% ABV.
Unless it was a Costco release. Which of course it is.
In which case it swaggers in at 50% ABV. And as for how it tastes – well that bit is close at hand.
Meanwhile back to Costco.
As many readers will know, Costco is – to put it mildly – a bit of a presence in booze retail. Having reputedly sold between $6.5bn and $7bn of alcoholic beverages of one sort or another in 2023, it’s the largest retailer of booze in the world by value, and based on the prices, almost certainly by volume as well.
It also sells more wine, spirits and beer than any other retailer in the US or Canada and more Macallan and Johnnie Walker Blue than anyone else in the world.
And of course it sells boatloads of its own brand whisky products (Kirkland) where its margins will make it even more money.
With all the bottling done by Alexander Murray, Costco puts out a couple of blends every year and a handful of other whiskies which mostly appear less regularly – a Speyside, a Highland and an Islay and a couple of others.
All of this of course is to say that with the scale it operates at, and with the volume of whisky Costco bottles, it can afford to sell it at prices that would make other retailers wince. The margin per bottle may be slender, but with that many bottles being sold, the bottom line profit will be outsized.
But the best bit about this is that as well as being ridiculously well priced, it also drinks far above its price point. It is (spoiler alert) a very satisfying Islay Single Malt.
And while I’ve spent more than enough time with this whisky to know that it stands very soundly on its merits, I can’t help wondering if that price point makes me like it that much more.
Most of us agree that the pleasure we take in a whisky is heavily influenced by our emotional response to it. By the memories and feelings it evokes,
And in this case I have a vivid memory of feeling delighted at only paying $39 for it. So I can’t help but like this whisky a little more.
And knowing that about myself made settling on a score doubly difficult. In the end I landed on a score based on the most dispassionate version of myself that I could muster. Thoroughly objective. It’s all about the liquid. And not the price point.
But if I’m honest, I could easily have bumped this one up a point by allowing my inner voice to celebrate my abiding delight at such a reasonable shelf price. Whisky like this at $39 is whisky you really want to share. And that makes me happy.
(For reference; in the US cost can vary widely by State due to different levels of tax, but as an indication for non-US readers, the Craigellachie 13 year old – which is regularly cited as one of the best value single malts routinely available in America at between $48-58 -though I’ve seen it at $70 in Manhattan).
Review
Kirkland Islay, Single Malt Scotch, Undisclosed distillery, NAS, bottled by Alexander Murray, 50% ABV
$39 (prices vary by State from around $36-$48)
So this review is based on the release that hit the shelves at Costco in 2022. It’s hard to pin down exactly when it started appearing as it tends to appear at different times in different states. Price also varies by State. I got this bottle for $39 on the CT/NY borders (in a CT store).
Word is that there is a new release on the shelves now. It will likely disappear quite fast but as it appears at different times around the country it will be a while before it’s all gone.
The distillery is undisclosed and there is no age statement. Basically all we know is that it’s a single malt, it’s from Islay and the ABV is 50%. The label proudly declares that it's been “Matured in Oak”, but nothing more. From the colour (a tarnished gold with a hint of mossy green) and the fact they don’t specify any other kind of cask, we can assume it was matured American ex-Bourbon casks.
There has of course been plenty of speculation concerning the source of the whisky. Most people seem to come down in favour of Caol Ila, not least because it is possibly the only distillery that could produce the kind of quantity that Costco requires. And some of the notes definitely align; it could be a Caol Ila.
Others lean toward Bruichladdich, but ultimately it doesn’t matter much. It’s how it plays with your palate that counts, wherever it comes from.
And I happen to think it plays rather well.
Nose
The alcohol is definitely present but not overwhelming. A slight prickle, but not too aggressive.
This feels light and spritely on the nose. The smoke is there from the start but it’s not aggressive or overpowering. This is not an Islay bruiser that’s looking for a fight.
Very clean and fresh. Like newly cut pine. Resinous. There’s a grassy and vegetal note (that I associate with Caol Ila) to the extent that it smells a little “green” – in a good way.
A little bit Ardbeggian but obviously it isn’t. Medicinal maritime notes.
The sweetness is quite delicate and gives ripe pear, peach and something slightly tropical like pineapple. A hint of citrus - but as a background note. Lemon sherbert.
After about 15 minutes with my nose well and truly ensconced in my trusty Glencairn I was rewarded with a smoked bread and butter pudding that’s been soaked through with custard, as well as the inevitable salty sea air that brings all the coastal notes of brine and damp seaweed.
I could happily nose this for hours.
Palate
Now Islay comes out to play for real. There’s no mistaking this for anything other than what it is. Classically smokey, peaty, fruity and briney.
It’s creamy. Not particularly viscous or chewy, but it does coat the palate. Like silk.
There’s an interesting savoury note mixing in with the sweetness. Like a syrupy aged fig balsamic vinegar I once had. And there are notes of salted caramel and lots of campfire.
The label speaks of cigar smoke, which I don’t really get. But I do get a lovely combination of woodsmoke and ash. There’s a suggestion of a fire pit the morning after. Still holding heat deep inside but it’s the cooling ash and charred remains of wood that prevail.
And the sweetness of the fruit detected on the nose remains, but now it’s more like smoked stewed apples.
And then there’s more brine and sea spray. Burnt driftwood. Lobster pots and fishing nets drying in the breeze. The medicinal maritime notes picked up on the nose linger on the finish along with a light dusting of red chilli flakes.
It leaves me wanting to eat rather a lot of oysters that have just been plucked from the sea.
The Dregs
If this whisky was in a different bottle and from a different retailer it would definitely cost more – and I’d be happy to pay it. Add another 40-50% to the price and it would still be reasonable for what it is. Certainly by the standards of US pricing.
It’s a thoroughly satisfying dram with a price point to be celebrated. One that makes it a whisky for sharing with everyone. And it’s a versatile whisky that makes for a great smokey Highball and if you like a smokey Hot Toddy as I do, then this is your dram.
It even stands up very well to having a chunk of smoked bacon added to it. When making sausages from scratch with friends it seemed like an entirely sensible thing to do and it turned out beautifully. I urge non-vegetarians to try it.
Chances are of course, that many of our regular Islay whiskies would perform just as well in all these modes. But with the prices we pay for many of them, I’m not sure I’d be inclined to find out. This is where this Kirkland comes in.
All in all, this is a thoroughly satisfying dram. It does what you want an Islay whisky to do and it does it well. Decent ABV, plenty of character and worth dwelling over.
At one point I was drinking this alongside the Ardbeg 10 (which I reviewed recently. The Kirkland holds its own and is not immediately outclassed, but the Ardbeg clearly takes it on the finish.
And I take a perverse pleasure in seeing this bottle on my shelves, where it currently nestles alongside titans like Ardbeg, Bruichladdich, Longrow and Kilkerran. It may raise eyebrows and look out of place to some, but as long as I can find it I’ll be happy to give it space.
Score: 6/10
Tried this? Share your thoughts in the comments below. NF