After the white labeled Phenomenolgy , comes it’s counterpart the Black labeled ‘No Name’. The name sounds mysterious indeed, but as it happens Compass Box have discolosed quite a lot of information about this one. The key components are as follows (described by CB, and annotated by me):
“The recipe is primarily sourced from the Pier Road distillery (read: Ardbeg). The tempering single malt is from the Islay distillery in Port Askaig( read: Caol Ila) , with its more elegant, restrained peaty malt whisky. To add dimension, fruit character and an ethereal element, we have added a small portion of malt whisky from a much-loved distillery in the Northern Highlands village of Brora (read: Clynelish). We finished things off with just a touch of malt whisky finished in French oak, providing a lovely underlying sweetness and richness.”
So essentially we have 75.5% Ardbeg , 6% Caol Ila and 13.4 % Clynelish, and a bit of highland blend. Lovely, right?
And indeed, this is the peatiest Compass Box to date (and feels peaty indeed), bottled at 46%.. Interesting right? Islay fans, read carefully:
Compass Box No Name , 48.9% , €119 
Nose: Big notes of ash, dried lemon, lime, and wet dog (yes, love it), it’s clearly dominated by the Ardbeg and the zest… I am thinking tarry ropes, and seashell. There’s a wee hint of grapefruit pith, and sweet smoky cereals. with a bit of water it gets creamier with some vanilla.
Splendid stuff if you’re a fan of Ardbeg / Islay malts. the Ardbeg and Caol Ila, mix wonderfully well with the Clynelish, and create a complex and very satisfying dram if you’re in the mood for some smoke, ash and tar, with a nice citrus balance.
Get one.I know I am.
Great review. It sounds like a very tempting buy. My question is: does Compass Box still tell you the ages of each component or does it stop at just the recipe list posted above? I miss when they did it a la Flaming Heart 15th Anniversary and you knew you were getting a fair bit of 30 yr old Caol Ila in it.
if you email them, they will tell you all the ages of every component. but they can not do it unless you ask it explicitly…