Everyone knows the big names in Scotch whiskies and even the lesser-known brands tend to be older distillers, some with a heritage spanning hundreds of years. However, in recent decades some new names have hit the scene and made a fairly big splash considering their relative lack of experience.

Isle Of Arran Distillers began making whisky just 20 years ago on the island of the same name on the southwestern coast of Scotland--an area close to my heart, given my regular childhood summer holidays nearby. It's a perfect location for making single malts; the water is crystal clear and the warmer temperatures, aided by the Gulf Stream, make for quicker maturation.

Its 14-year-old has been gathering glowing reviews and awards for very good reason. It has a solid, sweet nose, with strong honey and vanilla scents coming through over a background of citrus fruit and faint floral aromas. All of these notes combine for a much richer and warmer feel than you would expect. The taste is much the same, with sweet, fruity and floral flavours, developing with a lot of milder spicy undertones as it goes on. It's a remarkably complex malt for its age and one that could challenge the best of the established distilleries.

An even younger upstart is Kilchoman, which set up shop on Islay just 10 years ago and is the only independent distillery on the famed island. Most whisky enthusiasts will know Islay malts for their robust, heavily peated flavours and Kilchoman is no exception.

Their standard edition is the Machir Bay, a relatively young malt which--like the Isle Of Arran 14--is matured in bourbon and sherry casks to impart a fruity flavour. It has had three bottlings so far, the one I tried being from 2014. Despite its very young age, consisting of five and six year-old whisky, the taste is remarkably deep. Initially sweet and floral like the Arran, it soon develops into a smokey, spicy finish, with hints of dark chocolate and a strong peaty presence.

Both of these whiskies can be found at stores around Taichung for around NT$2,000 each.