
December 11, 2020

Three Penderyn of Wales

Of course our Welsh friends still do a few unlikely wine finishes (wineskies) but there ought to be some proper, shiny, glorious all-natural malt whisky of theirs that would stun the malty world and conquer the Olympus of whisky. In the meantime…

Penderyn ‘Moscatel Wine Finish’ (60.5%, OB, UK, 2020)

Penderyn ‘Moscatel Wine Finish’ (60.5%, OB, UK, 2020)
Let’s keep an open mind, will you? I even know a good friend of mine who likes to have his sardines with strawberry jam. Serious! (not really)… Colour: light gold. Nose: hey wait, fresh parsley and watercress? I’ll buy that by the palette! The rest is a tad more uncertain, but at 60%+, anything is. With water: roasted muscat grapes, kougelhopf, rosehip, bananas flambéed, new leatherette, marc de gewurztraminer… I believe there are other ways of coming up with a similar spirit (like, distil grapes), but alternate ways are always philosophically interesting. Mouth (neat): I think this is funny, and that it rather works. It’s impossible to put it into a box, not even sure it tastes of whisky, but I know they make some rose liqueur in Malta that’s pretty successful and that’s not too far from this. Prickly pear liqueur springs to mind too. Other than that, it’s a strong juice… With water: not whisky, but fun stuff! I’ve distilled pinot gris one day and came up with something demonstrably similar. Finish: medium, grape-y, raisiny. Comments: in my book this is not whisky, so I couldn’t quite ‘judge’ this juice, but it’s got its charms. Moscatel, all right - no this is not a charity score.
SGP:651 - 78 points.

Let’s drop wine!...

Penderyn 10 yo 2010/2020 (60.8%, La Maison du Whisky, Artist, second fill bourbon (YEAH), cask #30, 212 bottles)

Colour: pale gold. Nose: porridge, grist, mashed turnips, ink, grapefruit skin and brake fluid, and a lot of ethanol. This had to be expected. With water: some raw herbal bread and brioche, focaccia, then shifts towards fruits, crushed bananas, butter pears, preserved peaches… It would keep Penderyn’s mashy profile, but the breads are rather for chic areas this time. Mouth (neat): really very hot, but I seem to spot some tangerine drops and notes of khakis. And bitter herbs and pine needles, but you cannot really tell as long as water hasn’t been added to this rather brutal baby. With water: fresh and fruity, with a peppery and gristy background. Rather plums, greengages, green pears, a few bonbons, perhaps ripe kiwis, some grassy holly eau-de-vie (not holy)… The core remains pretty mashy. Finish: medium, with notes of mashed sweet potatoes, turnips, leaves and more green pears. Comments: it remains a little rough but I believe it’s one of my favourite Penderyns this far.
SGP:561 - 83 points.

Perhaps a gentler one, so that we’re having a trio?

Penderyn 6 yo ‘Batch 1’ (50%, That Boutique-y Whisky Company, 2020)

Penderyn 6 yo ‘Batch 1’ (50%, That Boutique-y Whisky Company, 2020)
Crikey, they even have this at Dramazon. Colour: straw. Nose: unusual, although the pine needles and the buttery mashed potatoes are well there. Oh and Muskatnuss, Herr Müller! Some cracked pepper too, lemon rind, perhaps those khakis again… With water: fern and pine needles, cardamom, resins, and perhaps a little curry, which should come from the wood. What was it BTW? Mouth (neat): hey this is good! Lovely squeezed oranges, cinchona, ginger, orange blossom honey… The oak may get a tad too peppery after a few seconds, but that’s nothing. With water: curry indeed, oranges, more cardamom, almond paste; and the usual mashy notes. Mashed parsnips, perhaps, eggplant… Finish: medium, on ginger cookies and green pepper. White pepper, cinnamon, oak in the aftertaste. Comments: another probably un-Dorito-ed one that I find really good.
SGP:561 - 82 points.

Ciao (with thanks to Nicolas)