December 16, 2015

All over the world, four by four,
today Tasmania vs. England

Prince Charles will be happy, whichever the outcome!

Heartwood ‘Any Port in a Storm’ (69.9%, OB, Tasmania, 2015)

A most funny bottling, a vatting of 95% Tasmania Distillery aka Sullivan’s Cove and 5% Lark, done by independent bottler Tim Duckett. At 69.9% vol., you bet this is cask strength! Colour: dark amber. Nose: anaesthetizes your nostrils, your olfactory bulb, and probably your brain at this strength, but the careful taster will find some touches of damson plums, gunflints, and crushed cassis in the background. But water is obligatory! With water: no, more water. With more water: we tamed it! Leather, blackcurrant buds, chocolate, malt, black earth, bitter oranges… What’s not to like? Mouth (neat): extremely strong of course, but all this spicy chocolate mixed with oranges and perhaps chervil just works – provided you don’t take more than one drop at a time into your mouth. A touch of ‘good’ sulphur too (mineral sulphur). With water: gets pretty gingery/spicy. Middle-European gingerbread, more bitter oranges, dry Madeira, and a wee carbony side. Finish: quite long, gingery, a tad fizzy/sparkling. That’s just a feeling, it doesn’t make bubbles mind you. Comments: different and unusual, very interesting, very well composed. Malt for chocolate lovers! SGP:452 - 86 points.

So, let’s try to find another Australian/Tasmanian…

Overeem ‘Bourbon Cask Matured’ (60%, OB, Old Hobart Distillery, Tasmania, +/-2015)

Another ‘world’ distillery that pulled success and a high reputation within just a few years. Colour: gold. Nose: bourbon wood reveals good distillates, said a friend of mine. This is pristine vanilla-ed (but not too vanilla-ed) and softly fruity, with melons and apples, custard, tinned fruit salad, and acacia honey. The cereals feel in the background, which is great. With water: between Arran and Amrut! Very nice easy fruitiness, with some backbone. Mouth (neat): excellent! Lemon-flavoured jell-O, banana sweets, vanilla pods, and a very discreet coconutty side. The whole’s extremely sweet, but that may be the very high strength. With water: more easiness that goes down too well. Marshmallows, leaves, vanilla, a touch of barley syrup. Perhaps just a notch too easy? Finish: medium, very sweet, a little syrupy. Comments: I almost liked it better without water. But then, 60% vol… Excellent whisky anyway. SGP:641 - 83 points.

English Whisky Co. 7 yo 2007/2015 (63.5%, Blackadder, Raw Cask, Sauternes cask, cask #804, 224 bottles)

I find that more than great that the very smart people at Blackadder manage to bottle unusual ‘world’ malts such as Amrut or, for that matter, the English St George. I believe this one was still distilled by Mister Iain ‘Laphroaig’ Henderson! Unless he was already at Edradour’s. Colour: gold. Nose: yeah I know, an English malt matured in Sauternes sounds a bit like some Chinese Appenzeller, but in this case, there’s something that seems to work. In fact, the Sauternes does most of the job, with mirabelles, apricots, honey, vanilla fudge, and perhaps a little rubber (sulphury), while the distillate only adds a porridgy side. With water: perhaps a little more mineral. Mouth (neat): not bad at all, I must say. Not that this is Agincourt/ Azincourt reloaded, but once again, the Sauternes tends to lead, with notes of a plum pie straight from the oven as well as quinces, but the spirit’s a little more talkative on your palate, with a lemony/porridgy expression. With water: sweet creamy maltiness covered with a lot of mirabelles, orange marmalade, and more quince jelly. What was the château again? Finish: not that long, and perhaps not extremely ‘focussed’. Plums and muesli. Comments: there’s an experimental side to this. I find it very honest. SGP:551 - 79 points.

English Whisky Co. ‘Peated’ (55.2%, OB for The Whisky Exchange, 290 bottles)

Not much is told about this bottling, but the fact that TWE selected it is intriguing… Colour: white wine. Nose: fresh sweet peat. Smoked pears, a little patchouli, orange leaves, ashes, coal smoke. A little narrow, perhaps, but pretty clean. With water: same. Elementary peat, I’d say. Mouth (neat): sweet, easy peat, akin to that very young peater that Benriach had, called Bernie’s moth or something ;-). Tends to become ashier and smokier, though. The first steeping of a very smoked lapsang souchong. With water: fine. Finish: shortish, a little fruitier. I just couldn’t quite tell you which fruits we’re talking about. Comments: indeed, it’s smoky, but I find the body a little thin. Frankly, apart from Brora and Ledaig (and Glen Garioch and Jura at times), who managed to make some really great peaters outside Islay? Should all distilleries make peated variants or not? Discuss… SGP:645 - 77 points.

Was that rugby? It seems that the Australians won big time.

(many thanks, Brooke!)

All over the world, four by four, today Tasmania vs. England

All over the world, four by four,
today Tasmania vs. England