Westland American Oak
Westland American Oak, 3 YO, 46 %
In Seattle, Washington, USA, you can find the Westland Distillery. It turns out these Americans make great single malt whiskey! And they are nerdy! And they are transparent, sharing a lot of cool info online. It is very rare to find this much details on a whisky:
Grain bill: Washington Select Pale Malt, Munich Malt, Extra Special Malt, Pale Chocolate Malt, Brown Malt
Cask types used: Cooper's Select New American Oak, Cooper's Reserve New American Oak, First Fill Ex-Bourbon
Yeast strain used: Belgian Brewer's Yeast
Fermentation time: 144 Hours
I just love details like that.
The Westland American Oak is available in Norway at NOK 921 (11403801), and in Sweden at SEK 799 (4063901/). You can also buy the Westland American Oak at USD 70 for a full bottle in select states.
Nose: Wow! Delightful notes of slightly toasted cinnamon sticks, demerara sugar, caramel, maple syrup and toast with orange marmalade. Very rich, complex and fruity. Needs a few minutes in the glass to open up, when when it does you are really rewarded. There's a touch of Christmas to the nose. Creme brûlée with a cinnamon dusting!
Taste: Rich and full-on mouthfeel. Quite peppery right off, then it calms down and the fruitiness, the caramel and the cinnamon comes through.
Finish: Medium long finish. Slightly oaky now, and tending towards dry for a split second, then the sweetness, the cinnamon and the fruits are back. Quite nutty - mainly almonds. Oranges, lemons and pine wood on the finish line.
Comments: A very convincing effort! Just three years old? Very exciting stuff going on in Seattle, I would say. This is on par with some of the best of the Nordics!
Score (88/100)
Sláinte!
- Thomas