Nose: There’s peat, to be sure, with freshly cleaned milk bottles, wood ash, and Sencha Japanese green tea, behind the peat there’s a little piney-ness, vanilla, and unmistakable pearsPalate: A mouthful of contradictions: oily then drying, ginger then white chocolate, smokey then fruityFinish: Creamy smoke lingers and lingers, also milk chocolate, unsalted peanuts, and hints of ginger powderIn conclusion: A very fun peated release that doesn’t lose itself in some mistaken desire to be an Islay-like peat monster. The EWC fruitiness is never far away and the spicy ginger that was in the Classic is right here in the peated. Very well crafted whisky.- Jason Johnstone-Yellin (www.guidscotchdrink.com)