Fully matured in a refill sherry butt, distilled: 30.01.2013 & bottles at CS: 30.06.2022. With an outrun of 637 bottles, all NCF and NC.
Appearance: Sunset golden orange. Not hugely viscous if the film on the glass is anything to go by. Not many trails to speak of, more of a slight ripple in the film, undefined. The tide mark becomes broken and a series of tiny droplets.
Nose: A lovely sweet smokey nose, very friendly on the first sniff! Butterscotch, dried fruits and spongecake. This, for me, is the most pleasant nose of the evening. A subtle funk lingers in the background, just adding a ‘je ne sais quoi’ to the nose. A buttered fruitcake note is starting to dominate the nose. Rich and heavy.
Palate: The ABV is carried dangerously well. A spicy, possibly chilli, tingle on the tongue and a sweet cherry and sulphur note. Some drying, although minimal, accompanied by some lovely sugary sweetness. It’s a lovely palate, but also quite simple.
Finish: Woody notes, slight drying and sweet Christmas spices. Medium to long.
Overall: I didn’t get much complexity but, with this dram at least, that seems to work. It’s a very friendly whisky that, although simple in terms of flavour profile, works well.