Based in Airdrie, Alberta, Sierra Springs Liquor has a reputation for selecting some really unique single casks for their store exclusives. That being said, the whisky under review today is a little more inline regarding the character of the distillery it comes from. What is admirable is that it’s highlighting a trend that I sincerely hope continues this year and that’s ex-Bourbon matured Scotch.
It’s a lot easier to hide a sub-standard whisky behind an active sherry or red wine cask. With ex-Bourbon casks, there is nowhere to run. Its subtle signature exposes the true character of a whisky…for better or worse. Thankfully, the whisky under review today falls into the former category!
This Sierra Springs Liquor exclusive comes from the First Editions independent bottlers. It’s a 13 year old from Craigellachie Distillery located in the Speyside region. It’s matured in a single ex-Bourbon cask and bottled at 57.1%.
Nose: When you pour this, be patient and let it sit a while. Advice I would also extend to Craigellachie’s core range. Even in their older aged stated bottlings, there develops this rich toasted, malty cereal note, which gives it a very old-school character. Most ex-Bourbon matured Speyside whiskies have an intense tropical fruitiness. This whisky is certainly tropical, yet there is this nice sweet and savoury balance that is rare for a Speysider. Freshly sliced and dried pineapple is joined by this intriguing cheese note. Nothing strong. Maybe a lightly spiced Gouda. Honey, dried ginger and vanilla are all present as well. Ripe pear is in there, but it’s faint. There’s a bit of alcoholic sharpness on this one due to its proof, so keep that schnozolla above the rim of your glass!
Palate: That old school vibe comes across big time right from the entry. Oily, mouthcoating, intensely malty, but not in a youthful way at all. Guns n’ Roses were still playing dive bars on the Sunset Strip when whisky with this character was being bottled. That malty character cuts through the sweetness, citrus and spice. Cinnamon shows up part way through. At the end of the development I get something akin to a cocoa covered dark fudge ball, laced with a few chili flakes. I would have liked to have seen just a touch more of that pear that I got on the nose. That would have sent this one into the stratosphere.
Finish: The only thing I would say against this whisky is that the finish is not as characterful as the rest of the experience. This is something I have also noticed in their core range as well. It’s not that it’s bad. Just shorter than expected. When your glass is empty, keep nosing it as it’s an experience in and of itself.
Conclusion
Craigellachie’s core 13 year old is still a bargain at around $80 CAD. Being a single cask, cask strength store exclusive, this one is a steal at $120. For those such as myself, whisky like this, which harkens back to better days, is a great education in what old-school Scotch used to taste like. For you old-timers out there, it will be a trip down memory lane.
Years ago, when my wife and I were looking for our first house that we would own together, we were obsessed with this British documentary series called “Build a New Life in the Country”, where a couple or family bought a run down, severely dilapidated heritage farm or house in the countryside to get away from it all. Some episodes ended in success, some ended with a partial completion and more than a bushel full of financial uncertainty. Regardless of the outcome, there was always a good story to tell.
As I was researching Kingsbarns, memories of the themes of that show came wafting back to me. The big dream, the creative ambition, the desire to start a new life, unexpected costs, not enough money. Yet, a happy ending (though a bittersweet one for the founder).
The initial idea of creating the distillery lay in the mind of Douglas Clement, who was a golf caddy in and around St. Andrews, long time home of The Open PGA major tournament. Over the years, he noticed that after a hard day on the links, many golf tourists wanted to visit a distillery, have a tour and a drink, and walk away with a bottle as a souvenir. Only problem was, the nearest distillery was 50 miles (80 km) away. Douglas’ desire to fill that niche lead him to pitch his idea to several golf contacts whom he caddied for. With this initial investment in place, he was able to secure a long-term lease from the nearby Cambo Estate for the East Newall Farm, as well as obtain planning permission from Fife county council. The farm was quite run down, but had lots of character and potential for a distillery and visitor’s center.
With this initial investment and a £670,000 (~ 1 million Canadian dollars) grant from the European Union, Douglas still did not have enough capitol to realize his dream of turning the farm into a distillery. Fortunately, William Wemyss, a golfing friend whose family had interests in a number of industries, including an independent bottling company (Wemyss Malts) and a French winery, offered a substantial grant to keep the project going. To keep the dream alive, Douglas and his investors sold their interests in the distillery to the Wemyss family. Now working for Wemyss, he became the Kingsbarns visitor’s center manager and director, opening the center on St. Andrew’s Day 2014. Douglas chose to leave the distillery in 2018 to pursue other ventures and later that year, Kingsbarns released their first whisky.
Although no longer directly involved with the distillery, except of course in spirit, Douglas decided to get a tattoo on his forearm to commemorate the first distillery release. Although he was not able to independently realize his dream of serving whiskey to the golfing masses, his vision had ultimately created something that made all of Fife proud. That, in and of itself, is substantially rewarding.
In my glass today is the second core release from Kingsbarns. Called Balcomie, this is a non-age stated (NAS) single malt whisky made from 100% Concerto barley from county Fife. It spent its entire life in ex-Oloroso American oak Sherry butts from Jerez, Spain and is bottled at 46%. This is non-chill filtered and contains no added colouring.
Nose: Fresh, minty and slightly floral. There are a couple of layers of fruitiness in here. Tropical notes are dominant. Combined with a confectionary sweetness, it’s almost like candied pineapple and ginger, the latter of which tickles the nose a little. A less prominent fruitiness comes in the form of poached pears in syrup sprinkled with cinnamon. Lovely mint milk chocolate bar, like the ones sold at the old-style chocolate shop near the house where I grew up (the now defunct Lee’s Chocolates for those who lived around the west part of Vancouver). Much of what I’m nosing is the result of this near-perfect balance between spirit and cask. For a lighter spirit, ex-Sherry casks can simply overpower a whiskey. That is not the case here.
Palate: A sweet and zesty one right from the start. Initially, I get creamy, rich honey and barley sugar on the entry. As this transitions into the development, the citrus comes to the fore along with a slice of fresh ginger, which tingles the tongue a bit. That floral note from the nose comes back as the experience approaches the mid-development, giving the spirit a slight gin character. Throughout the whole development, that poached pear is prominent, this time with some dark chocolate sauce drizzled over top. For an ex-Oloroso cask, the dark baking spices are quite faint. A good thing really, as this gives the spirit a chance to shine. Instead, the cask is delivering with that dark chocolate.
Finish: The citrus and syrupy sweetness leads to a juicy finish, which dries out slightly at the end. That pear and dark chocolate continue all the way through. The cask is, again, only exerting a light touch.
With water added
The ginger note is quite strong on the nose now. Floral honey is in there too. The poached pear is absent, replaced by a barely fresh one. After I nose this for a while, I get dark chocolate ginger, quite the contrast when compared to the chocolate note I got without water added. The stronger ginger character continues on the palate and the floral nature of the development is turned up a bit. Still a ripe pear rather than poached.
Conclusion
Whether you like this scotch will depend upon the expectations that you had when you purchased the bottle. Those who read the label, saw the word “Sherry” and were expecting a whisky heavily laced with dark spices and dried fruit, disappointment will soon set in. Lowland spirit is a light, fruity and floral thing. Swamping it with an active Sherry cask would erase that character almost entirely. These Oloroso solera casks instead impart just enough of its signature to let you know of its presence without reaching for the ten pound lump hammer. In the end, the result is a supremely balanced young Scotch that I am salivating to try at cask strength (coming soon to Alberta, I hear). For those who are interested in trying all facets of Sherry cask matured Scotch, and those lovers of Lowland Scotch in general, this one will put a smile on your face.
Correction: I made a couple of errors in the timeline regarding Douglas’ founding of the distillery as well as his time at Kingsbarns after him and investors were bought out by the Wemyss family. I have made these corrections in the text. Sorry!
Glenfarclas is one of the very first distilleries that I discovered in my whisky journey, and one of the first that I fell in love with. It was the perfect distillery to discover that funky, nutty, sherry flavour profile that I’ve come to enjoy so much.
That being said, Glenfarclas is a family owned distillery that’s very anchored in tradition. This means that you can know exactly what to expect from most of their core lineup. Lots of sherried goodness, but not much in terms of creative maturation or cask finishes. While their yearly Family Cask releases do offer some variety and are bottled at cask strength, they aren’t always affordable to be enjoyed as a daily dram.
This is why I was so excited when I noticed this release on our shelves at Wine and Beyond. As we are currently celebrating Wine and Beyond’s 10th anniversary this month, I thought the timing would be perfect to review this exclusive release! This Glenfarclas 12 Year Old is botted at 56.9%, non chill filtered and natural colour. Like its little brother in the core range, it was matured in sherry casks.
In the glass: Copper, somewhat thin. Based on looks, the sherry influence seems similar to that of the core releases.
Nose: A lot of alcohol on the nose, proceed with caution! With time, it dissipates and gives way to that classic nutty Glenfarclas nose with dried fruits in the background. Some water helps to bring out baking spices. Palate: This is definitely the Glenfarclas 12yr on steroids. I will warn that this whisky is quite sharp. I will never shy away from a high abv dram, but even with water the strong alcohol remains on the palate. Once you get past that, the same nutty oloroso goodness from the nose shines through. Lots of spice rounds out the flavour profile, with subtle notes of raisin.
Finish: Short, very dry, and more sharpness at the end. That being said, most of the alcohol shows up at the beginning, so the finish is smoother than I would have expected. More spice and fresh hazelnuts.
Conclusion
This whisky didn’t quite live up to my expectations. Perhaps my feelings of nostalgia around other classic Glenfarclas releases set the bar too high. While the age statement, abv, and price point are all very reasonable, I feel as though this whisky was a bit unbalanced. The predominant alcohol notes masked the funky sherry goodness that I was hoping to find.
I’m still very pleased to see Wine and Beyond getting an exclusive release from this distillery, and I hope to see another one in the future. Ryan Engen has done a tremendous job of bringing in a wide variety of quality single casks, and his track record in the last few years shows that it’s always worth making the gamble to grab a bottle! I always look forward to trying his selections, they are just one of many reasons to celebrate this 10 year milestone or Wine and Beyond. Cheers to the next 10 years, and many more amazing whiskies to come!
