Peat forms in wetland areas from decayed vegetation such as sphagnum moss and ferns. As these areas flood, the vegetation is cut off from oxygen so the rate of its decay is very much slowed. Peat gatherers will cut into banks of this ancient turf during the spring. The bricks they carve out are dried and used to fire the kilns that dry the barley during the malting process. Smoke which comes into contact with the moist grain during this process is retained right through the whisky-making magic – through milling, mashing, fermentation, distillation and even ageing.

You can roughly divide the smoky flavours that peat imparts into a whisky into three main categories, which some malts will express more than others. The first kind of smoke that comes to mind is your classic BBQ smokiness with an almost sweet richness to it. This sort of smoke can sometimes be more reminiscent of a smouldering hearth, or at other times that hearth's sooty sweepings in more intense drams.

The second kind of smokiness, for me, reveals itself as an earthiness – like freshly tilled soil. This can lead to a slightly brackish, almost briny quality in some drams.

The third main quality is all to do with peat's natural phenol compounds, which have long been known to have antiseptic qualities. 'Phenol' forms the 'P' in TCP (trichlorophenylmethyliodosalicyl), a popular form of antiseptic – especially in the UK. It goes a long way to explain why some of the more intensely-peated whiskies from the isle of Islay have an aroma often described as 'medicinal', 'antiseptic' or even 'bandages'. Sometimes these aromas appear to be more oily and can reveal whiffs of boot polish or burnt rubber; but that's a great thing if you like smoky whisky – really!

PPM