December 2020 – thewhiskyof.today

Wolfburn Langskip

Wolfburn langskip is as cask strength release from Wolfburn distillery bottled at 58% ABV.

The name Langskip is taken from the Norse word for longship –
the Viking raiding ships that once dominated the Caithness coastline.
Sleek, smooth, purposeful and strong, the legacy of these ships surrounds the
Wolfburn distillery – in addition to settlements and burial sites,
Wolfburn’s home town of Thurso is said to be named after the Norse God of thunder Thor.

Its matured in firstfill bourbon casks and is their strongest expression so far. It has taken medals in
spirits competitions, Double Gold Medal winner, Singapore world spirits competition 2019.
But also Double Gold Medal winner, FiftyBest 2018.

Some tasting notes from the distillery.

Nose
Aromas of fruit blossom meld with dried apples and light oak.
In the background you’ll find traces of raisins and dates mixed with rich fruit cake.

Palate
Flavours burst onto the palate, rich and sweet, including maple syrup,
dark chocolate, almonds and raisins. The finish lingers nicely –
hints of vanilla gently fade away with a warming trace of caramel at the end.

Hausberg Gin No.2

Housberg Gin is a young company with a commitment to the distribution and development of artisan distilled spirits.
It’s a market that is growing rapidly and a bigger interest of gin has flourished around the world.
Hausberg Spirituosen is located in Bremen, Germany. I’ve been to the city a few years ago and its a great atmosphere
which probably contribution to their artisan destillation.

In their gin range they got currently 4 expressions from No1 to No4 but they also offer tasting kits and gift boxes containing
miniature bottles. The one in the picture above is their Hausberg Gin No. 2 avaliable in 3 sizes 0.7l, 0.35l and 0.1l.
Its bottled at 42.4% and it is described as the gentle and fuity gin.
This expression focuses on Seaberry, Tangerine together with other botanicals to contribute to a fresh taste.

See all their gin expressions here

Osmoz Citrus

About the brand:

Deeply attached to the Cognac region, our family has been wine growers for six generations and manage to
faithfully preserve the values initiated by the founder Augustin VALLET.
Today this transmission from father to son ensures the continuity and progression of our know-how.
As members of the lineage, we consider ourselves explorers and passionate taste lovers.

We are totally independent and we control the entire production to best meet our taste and qualitative requirements.
To date, we are proud to be one of the few family-owned companies to sell all of the production in bottles ;
our duty and, above all, our willingness is to perpetuate our traditions
through the elaboration of eaux-de-vie ever more technical and qualitative.

Their gins have been thought to be in perfect osmosis with their Cognac and family roots.
Fully developed ans distilled from gapes, they are totally faithful to our values ans appreciation of eaux-de-vie.
Combining modernity and tradition, theyselected six distinctive aromas from our range of
Cognacs : lime, apple, liquorice, apricot, almond ans clove are in both their creations.

Their osmoz citrus expression is a enhancement of their standard classic. They wanted to do something else besides the
classic juniper taste. This citrus is mostly orange and lemon and gives it a fresh nose together with the other botanicals.
And the second unique thing with Osmoz is that it is distilled from grapes. The bottle is at 46% abv and is made in small batches

Fary Lochan Rum edition #02

Fary lochan Rum Edition for those who are into an oiled whiskey with notes of rum.
In addition to the rum notes,  you will experience a spicy feeling of licorice, vanilla, grass and mineral salt.
In total there is 635 bottles of this release which is batch #02.

The whisky has been aged for 7.5 years – first 4 years in 2 bourbon barrels, and then 3.5 years in 2 rum casks.
The whisky was cask filled on 21 and 30 November 2012 and  then bottled on 6 February 2020.
It has a aclohol percent of 55.9%.

Palma Oak Spiced Gin

Palma Oak Aged Spiced Gin was first made as a limited edition butbecame so popular
that Mallorca Distillery has added it to its regular product range.
Palma Oak Aged Spiced Gin is a twist on the original Palma gin recipe.
Once distilled, the gin is stored in Mallorcan oak barrels that
previously stored wine from the local Manto Negro grape in Binissalem.

Vanilla, cinnamon and cloves are added gradually during this time,
which gives a complex sweetness and spice to the gin.
The result is an advanced and maximally flavored gin that pushes the boundaries of tradition.

Bottled at 40.4% abv.
Order it here (Sweden)

Read more about Taste of mallorca here

Wolfburn No. 204 Madeira Cask finish

In May 2011 one of the Wolfburn team went to locate the site of the old Wolfburn Distillery in Thurso, Caithness.
The purchase of the land was finalized in May 2012 and the first ground was broken a few months later in early August.
And short after that the distillery was up an running again to create some awesome expressions.

This limited edition Wolfburn is called No. 204 it has a cask finish of Madeira oak barrels.
The production of this expresson gave a total of 5800 bottles bottled at 46% abv.
This is the fifthsmall-batch release from the distillery and has matured for 5 years in
First-fill bourbon barrels then finished in Madeira hogsheads for 6 month.

Notes from the distillery:

ON THE NOSE – Rich desert-wine aromas are readily present,
augmented by deep bourbon sweetness.

ON THE PALATE – Sweet and full – give it time and a whole array of flavours unfurl.
Gentle notes of burnt sugar lead the way, overlaid with hints of soft oak and vanilla tones.
Hazelnut and gentle hints of orange are present too.

THE FINISH – Sweet tones linger on the palate and gradually melt away,
leaving a wee trace of honey and butterscotch at the very end.

Hyde No. 9 Iberian cask

Hyde 1906 No.9 Iberian Cask is a limited edition single malt from Hibernia Distillers.
It has been triple distilled in a traditional copper still using 100% Irish malted grain barley from a single distillery.
Initially aged for a period of at least 8 years in 200-litre, flame charred ex-bourbon oak casks from Kentucky,
this was then transferred into 200-litre first-fill vintage tawny port oak casks sourced from the
Portuguese village of Pinhao in the Douro Vally region in northern Portugal for a finishing period of 9 months.

Bottled at 43% abv and only 5000 bottles produced in this batch.
Notes from the distillery:

NOSE: Dried dark fruits with hints of cinnamon, nutmeg, and blackberry for a grapemeets-raisin nose that defines Tawny PORT.

TASTE: Notes of green apples, honey, citrus, spice, dried fruit, black pepper, and hazelnut, with a vanilla-like buttery finish that lingers on the palate.

FINISH: Medium to long with a grapey, malty, spicy, lingering finish.