2025 Whisky Show – Sweden’s High Coast

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From Finland to Norway and now Sweden, the Nordic section of 2025 London Whisky Show was well worth exploring.

My tasting companion knows the original folks behind High Coast, back when it was known as Box. Whilst I’ve had a chance to try a couple of expressions over the year, my companion had fewer opportunities. Hence, we found ourselves sampling not one, not two, but eight expressions!

High Coast Älv “Delicate Vanilla” 46% 

  • Nose – Subtle, sweet, fresh cut fruits, fruit cake with whipped cream, vanilla
  • Palate – Very soft, approachable, and enjoyable – think apple sauce,
  • Finish – Gentle sweet spices

This wasn’t my first time trying this expression; however, it was a lovely way to begin our journey.

High Coast Berg PX 50% 

  • Nose – The PX element was sharp, bright, and crystal clear! It then mellowed into sweet spices of cinnamon and nutmeg, with the wood coming through
  • Palate – More substantial than expected – rich fruits and nuts, and yet still had a soft, easy-going quality too
  • Finish – Black or green peppercorns

Berg means mountains – worthy of both admiring and climbing! It was amusing to flash back to our tasting from four years ago. Our quick sniff and swish was consistent with our slower, more measured experience!

High Coast 12 year PX 59.5%

  • Nose – Christmas cake! Delicious, rich, and robust
  • Palate – Delicious! Heavy Christmas pudding, chilli chocolate, mocha ice cream
  • Finish – Sweet

A rather lovely expression.

High Coast 12 year MMXXV (July 2025) “In Flames” 56.6%

  • Nose – Quite a bit happening with this one! Dark fruits, raisins, wood, and vanilla
  • Palate – Coffee, dark fruits and nuts, chocolate, like a coconut Mars bar
  • Finish – Long, pepper, and leaves

We didn’t have time to add water or spend more time with this dram, however, I have a feeling it would be even more interesting with both!

A limited edition expression launched in 2025, this 12-year unpeated whisky was matured initially in ex-Bourbon casks before being finished in Rum casks. The whisky and label design was a collaboration with a Swedish Heavy Metal band – Flames.

High Coast Aurora 46%

  • Nose – Bright, juicy, with marzipan, even a hint of black forest cake with cherries, joining chocolate cake, and vanilla icing
  • Palate – Balanced and approachable – fruity and fun with a puff of tobacco smoke
  • Finish – Light wood

Newly launched, we thought it was a terrific everyday dram. The peat was very subtle, more like a gentle nudge than a significant presence. Really rather nice!

High Coast Hav “Spiced Oak” 48% 

  • Nose – Gentle peat, sugary
  • Palate – Balanced, silky smooth! Fruit, spice, and a dash of peat
  • Finish – Wood, pepper, then sweet

Hav celebrates the Sea, with a dash of peat to join the spice and oak. Our guide shared that they use 20% peated whisky and 80% unpeated whisky.

High Coast Timmer “Peat Smoke” 48%

  • Nose – Light peat, fruit, sweet
  • Palate – Wow! Here is where the peat was hiding – proper bonfire with a great mouthfeel
  • Finish – Medium length with gentle smoke

Moving firmly into the peat territory, Timmer uses 40 ppm, matured in ex Bourbon barrels.

High Coast Solera “Swedish Oak” 52.5%

  • Nose – Spice, marmalade, orange peel
  • Palate – Spicy, prickly, envelopes with stewed apples, oak, and licorice
  • Finish – Dry, black peppercorn

Our last dram with High Coast was from their Solera approach with Swedish Oak. A rather good way to close! 

As shared, over the years, we’ve tried more than one High Coast (formerly Box Whisky), notably:

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Whisky Ladies World Tour – South Korea’s Ki One Unicorn 46%

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At London’s Whisky Show 2024, we were introduced to South Korea’s Ki One single malt. Founded in 2020 by Bryan Do, a Korean-American, with Scotland’s Andrew Shand, a special trio was released to reflect the three different elements: Tiger for Korea, Eagle for USA, and the Unicorn for Scotland’s national (mythical) animal.

During a visit to Singapore, our hostess had an opportunity to sample all three expressions, finally settling on this one.

Ki One “Unicorn” 3 year (2025) Virgin American Oak / ex-Bourbon 46%

  • Nose – Initially sour mash, brine, pickles, a bit musty, earthy with moss, then it began to shift, opening up in the glass to reveal curious elements of turmeric, mace, then bay leaf, mint, sweetening more and more, watermelon seeds, green apples, teak wood then fresh pine, wandering into a wet forest, fresh, clean, and fragrant air. Then nutmeg, ginger…. shifting back to those crunchy green apples
  • Palate – What a beauty! Chocolate melting in the mouth, gentle cinnamon spice, coffee cake, cloves, well-rounded and rewarding, from mocha to roasted coffee grounds, then orange peel
  • Finish – An incredibly long finish, bitter cinnamon bark or smoked oolong tea with honey

It has been some time since I encountered such a nuanced yet complex nose – a whisky that has several different elements that require slowing down to gently unfurl. There was an elegance and balance – each part nose, taste, finish brought something special to the equation. Yes, there was peat, and yet it was a subtle roast… like a shadow or echo of peat, rather than the main event.

We set the whisky aside and came back to find it even more beautiful. It paired wonderfully with our chocolate cake dessert… It was lovely just to sip and enjoy. For most this was the clear favourite of the evening.

Here is what the folks at Ki One have to say about this expression:

KI ONE UNICORN KOREAN SINGLE MALT 46% ABV

Unicorn is the third pillar of Ki One, representing master distillery Andrew Shand and the complexity of peated scotch whisky. Matured in the same combination of barrels as the Ki One Eagle, this expression uses malted barley that boasts a robust 50 parts per million of peat. Aromas of fall leaves and camp smoke are present as well as sea air and rich oak. The flavors are unmistakably smokey but with a delicacy that betrays its heavy peating. Smoked honey, warm grains, and a pleasant umami finish.

An excellent whisky that gets better the more time it spends in the glass. Well worth trying!

We sampled this in July 2026 as part of a “World Tour” together with:

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Whisky Ladies World Tour – Denmark’s Thy 5 year PX Oloroso 51.5%

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Ahhhh the Nordics! Whisky-wise, it has become a prolific part of the whisky world. Originating from Sweden, Denmark, Finland, Norway, and Iceland, the category is defined by extreme climate-driven maturation and experimental production techniques, such as using local rye, floor-malted barley, and local smoking materials like juniper, birch and even nettles. At the 2025 Whisky Show in London, there was a special featured section devoted to Nordic whiskies.

Denmark’s whisky production has significantly expanded in the last two decades – so much so that there is now a Danish Whisky Manifesto, with regulatory benchmarks to identify as “Authentic Danish Whisky” with 100% mashing, fermenting, distillation, and aging within Denmark.

At London’s 2025 Whisky Show, I had an opportunity to join a special Nordic session with Jakob Stjernholm, founder and co-owner of Thy. He shared insights into their use of Beechwood smoke to dry their grains.

Thy 5 year (2025) PX Oloroso 51.5%

  • Nose – Plum, pineapple, musk melon, cantaloupe, grapes, a curl of smoke, sweet, some nougat, burnt thyme, peppermint clove toothpaste, a touch medicinal, sweet wood, chocolate covered rum raisins, fresh
  • Palate – Yum! A dessert of Christmas cake – lots of rum-soaked raisins, plums, quite buttery, then a whoosh of pepper and smoke
  • Finish – Dry, with an almost numbing quality, relatively short
  • Water – We thought perhaps it would open up with water – it enhanced the cinnamon; however, it also made it curiously more acidic. Most of us found we preferred it at cask strength

What a mix of elements! It was both powerful and nuanced. Warm, with that curiously numbing quality. Unique and well worth exploring.

What more do we know? Here’s what the folks at Thy have to say:

A sweet and smooth single malt matured in PX and oloroso sherry casks for 4-5 years. It has an oily mouthfeel, rich dried fruits, sweetness and earthiness from old Pedro Ximenez casks, a hint of herbs and warming beechwood smoke on the palate.

It was a wonderful close to our Whisky Ladies World Tour.

Curious about more whiskies from Denmark?

Stauning – the pioneer and Denmark’s oldest operating distillery, starting in 2005. They combine modern engineering with traditional approaches like in-house floor malting and custom-made small copper pot stills to produce heavy, oily, spice-forward primarily Rye whiskies. I’ve had the pleasure of trying:

Next was Bryggeriet Braunstein, which was founded in 2007 and considered a maritime innovator. They build on their micro-brewing to expand into single malt distilling, often aging their spirits in unique locations, such as castles and coastal warehouses across Denmark. So far I’ve tried only one expression: Danica NAS 42% (unpeated) .

My favourite from Denmark is Fary Lochan  – a bit of a botanical maverick! Their USP is how they smoke malted barley with stinging nettles – producing a herbaceous smoke profile that is truly unique. I’ve been very fortunate to experience a few expressions:

Last but not least, founded in 2010 is Thy, founded in an organic family farm in Northwest Jutland. They focus on grain-to-glass farming with heritage grains. Another distinguishing feature is the use of beechwood to smoke their grains. Before this evening, I only sampled their Thy Bøg 50%.

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Whisky Ladies World Tour – Niko’s Single Malt 41%

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Giving whisky as a gift is nothing new. However, being given a whisky crafted just for you! And that too for your birthday? Now that is singular.

In 2024, our Whisky Ladies hostess was presented with a bottle of “Niko’s Single Malt” from the good folks behind Stranger and Sons. We are no strangers to their fabulous gins – the standard, the special Perry Road Peru collaboration with Bombay Canteen, and even their oak-matured gin experiment.

We tasted blind – knowing nothing about this whisky beyond who gifted it to our hostess!

Niko’s Single Malt

  • Nose – Warm, sweet, spices like cinnamon, cloves, some candied ginger, woody, an almost Cognac-like quality, joined by dried cranberries, rose, crème brûlée, resin, fruit like peach or an apricot pit, maritime sea salt spray
  • Palate – Oh wow! Really yummy! More of the sweet spices, joined by coriander, black cardamom, wood forward, great mouthfeel, oily, salted black licorice
  • Finish – Warming, long, lingering, closing on salted caramel

This was a very “full” whisky. Lots of rich aromas, flavours, and a fabulous finish. Like other whiskies matured in warm climates, there was a concentrated quality to all the different elements too.

We speculated about the ABV and thought it must be around 46% – surprisingly, we later discovered it was only 41%!

What more do we (now) know? After the session, Niko asked for more details, and the following was shared:

  • Type: Custom blended Indian single malt whisky
  • ABV: 41%
  • ⁠Composition: Blend of 4-year, 5-year, and 7-year old single malts
  • Maturation: All components matured in ex-bourbon casks
  • The 4-year-old whisky received additional maturation in a charred barrel (double matured)
  • Origin: All three malts came from casks purchased from a distillery in South India (likely Karnataka)
  • Final Resting Period: The casks were moved to Goa, where they rested for approximately 10-12 months before bottling
  • Other: According to the bottler, this final period is unlikely to have significantly altered the whisky’s character

What a brilliant start to our trip around the whisky world with Niko!

This evening continued with a trip around the world!

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Whisky Ladies Global Tour! Niko’s, Ki-One, Thy

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Some evenings remind me why tasting groups are so special. In our case, with the Whisky Ladies of Mumbai, many of us have enjoyed evenings together for a decade-plus. We’ve traversed the globe, sampling whiskies from Iceland to Tasmania, from traditional, mature Scottish drams to upstart experiments that wouldn’t meet Scottish standards to even be called whisky!

This particular evening was a whisky world tour, focused on three different yet complementary expressions:

It was a perfect progression – from a concentrated undisclosed Indian single malt, to an elegant, beautiful, lightly peated “Unicorn” from South Korea, we closed on a powerful yet nuanced Danish dram.

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2025 Whisky Show – Norway’s Bivrost

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I come from a cold part of the world. It is quite common to reach -35 to -40 °C in the winter. As glorious as the summers with ~18 hours of sunshine, the winters are long and dark. And yet we have a reward – the most spectacular skies that occasionally have the most remarkable light show with the Aurora Borealis.

However, real, serious cold belongs to the Arctic. Not exactly optimal whisky-making conditions… or are they? We were curious to learn more at Norway’s Aurora Spirit Distillery with their Bivrost whiskies in the Nordic section of the 2025 London Whisky Show.

Bivrost is named for the Aurora Borealis, and is reputed to be the world’s northernmost distillery. Made with Nordic malted barley, glacial meltwater, and aged in a wooden Viking longhouse at freezing temperatures, the result is something rather interesting in the bottle.

  • Bivrost Yggdrasil (2025) 46%
  • Bivrost Heim Dallr (Coming Soon) 50%
  • Bivrost Vanaheim (2023) Teak Cask Finish 46%
  • Bivrost Peated Oloroso 50%

First up, we were directed to try Yggdrasil – part of their core range.

 Bivrost Yggdrasil (2025) 46%

  • Nose – Fresh, subtle peat greeted us, with some dried fruits
  • Palate – Very approachable, gentle, apple cider, toast, toffee, and a touch of smoke
  • Finish – Medium

This expression is aged in a combination of Oloroso and in-house charred casks, matured between 4 to 6 years. The name Yggdrasil is from Norse mythology – a mighty ash tree, holding the nine worlds, held together by its branches.

Aurora Heimdallr (Coming Soon) 50%

  • Nose – It was quite herbal, almost floral – think farangipani! Then revealed fresh fruits (peach or apricot?), a drizzle of honey, nuts, and something else – surprisingly I began to think of honey nut corn flakes!
  • Palate – Sage, wood, almond, and some cinnamon buns too! It had fresh element too, some black pepper joining the sweetness
  • Finish – Dry with a touch of salt

The inaugural bottle from their new Aesir series, we had a chance to try before its official launch. It was matured in Rye and Amontillado seasoned casks. Though a potentially powerful 50%, it was surprisingly balanced and approachable.

Bivrost Vanaheim (2023) 46% 3506 Bottles

  • Nose – Very distinctive – fruits, nuts, honey
  • Palate – Softer than expected… it was like hot fresh cinnamon buns, then shifted into turkish delight, followed by apple cider
  • Finish – Herbal with a hint of spice

Matured in Bourbon, Sherry, and Brazilian Teak casks, Vanaheim is the 7th in their “Nine Worlds of Norse Mythology” series. It was the home of the Vanir – with Njord ruling the winds, sea, and fire, father of Freyer, the god of peace and pleasure, and Freya, goddess of love, beatuy, and fertiity. The bottles ….

Aurora Cask Sample – Peated Oloroso 50%

  • Nose – Peat and sweet – a perfect combination!
  • Palate – Balanced yet also a complete bonfire! We were whisked away to a campsite by a lake
  • Finish – Medium

Our final bottle ventured into a more robust peat than the Yggdrasil. It was a cask sample, not yet released, so you won’t find any tasting notes on their website – yet!

And there you have it – an introduction to a Bivrost quartet.

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2025 Whisky Show – Finland’s Teerenpeli

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We are no strangers to whiskies from Finland and were delighted to explore more in the Nordic section of the 2025 London Whisky Show!

I remember being introduced to the Teerenpeli 10 year more than a decade ago, courtesy of the team at The Whisky Exchange. I was looking for something different, possibly European, and this dram more than fit the bill!

Fast forward, and the good folks at Teerenpeli continue to put out a more than respectable range of expressions. Here is what we covered in our brief sniff and swish of Teerenpeli:

  • Teerenpeli Soidin 40% ~GBP 50 for 500 ml
  • Teerenpeli Kulo 7 year 50.7%
  • Teerenpeli 15 year 54.9% ~GBP 100 for 500 ml
  • Teerenpeli Savu 43% ~GBP 50 for 500 ml

Teerenpeli Soidin 40%

  • Nose – A lovely lady, lush, sherry, sweet
  • Palate – Sweet, balanced, soft, well-rounded, yet clear sherry influence
  • Finish – Lovely, light, and lingering

This sherry-matured opening act was inspired by the “dramatic mating rituals of the Nordic nature” – the dance of the birds was mentioned. Launched at the 2025 London Whisky Show,

Teerenpeli Kulo 7 year Sherry 50.7%

  • Nose – Delicious dark berries, robust Sherry, whisky-soaked raisins, caramel, a touch of mocha
  • Palate – Flavour balanced between sweet and spice, red velvet cake, dates, blackcurrant
  • Finish – A warm embrace of spice

This is like the big brother of the Soidin. With even more pronounced Sherry influence – likely both PX and Oloroso.

Teerenpeli 15 year 54.9%

  • Nose – Baked apple pie, cinnamon, and cloves, caramel, vanilla
  • Palate – Juicy apples, well-rounded, mature
  • Finish – Surprisingly light

This single malt was matured for 15+ years in 65% bourbon and 35% sherry casks. In our humble opinion? It was worth the wait.

Teerenpeli Savu 43%

  • Nose – Soft peat, sherry sweet, caramel apples
  • Palate – Smooth, gentle peat, lovely balance between sweet and peat
  • Finish – Dry

Using peated malted barley, Savu was matured in 80% bourbon and 20% Pedro Ximénez casks.

And there you have it! A rather good quartet from the folks at Teerenpeli.

Our other brushes with Teerenpeli centred on two expressions:

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Whisky Ladies’s Organic+ with Benromach Organic 46%, Nc’Nean 46%, GlenDronach Peated 48%

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I totally admit it, I was exhausted. An extra-long set of three flights back from Canada – the last of which was nearly 14 hours on the plane! Yup! That’s what happens when flying during monsoon, needing to refuel in another city before finally touching down in Mumbai. And yet it was worth it to join the Whisky Ladies latest evening!

We began with a calibration dram – something already open to get us in the mood for the malts to come! And this was no mild, neutral dram… no siree! The name “Vengeance” alone was a pretty clear indication it would be a ‘wake-up’ call rather than gently ‘easing into’ our evening of tasting.

It was a new expression to me. Vengeance X is from the Wakatsuru Saburomaru Distillery in Japan, and is a collaboration of Saburomaru x Shin Megami Tensei V and is a blend with another undisclosed distillery, combining sherry and red wine casks with peat. In our mini pour, here is what we found…

Vengeance X Blended Whisky 46%

  • Nose – Heady! Heavy sherry, rum, and brandy… then shifted from a mix of alcohols to sweet Nescafe, dark molasses, super sweet, cherry candies
  • Palate    – Surprisingly prickly. Dark sherry, heavy wood, peat
  • Finish    – Lingers, rich and resinous

It was much more powerful than a mere 46% indicated. With a start like this, we were indeed awake for the coming attractions!

We then moved on to our featured trio. There was an organic element in the equation, with each bottle carefully chosen from recent trips.

  • Benromach 9 year (2014 – 2023) Contrasts Organic 46%
  • Nc’Nean Organic (lot BH08) 46%
  • GlenDronach Traditionally Peated 48%

We began with the Benromach… a twist on the traditional with their “Contrasts Organic” expression, which is matured in virgin American oak barrels with organic barley.

Benromach 9 year (2014 – 2023) Contrasts Organic 46%

  • Nose – Surprisingly light at first. Leafy, green peppercorn, dried ginger, vanilla, honeysuckle, wood, nutmeg, cloves, and then minerals
  • Palate – Wow! All the big bold flavours were on the palate – from chilli, to banana, coffee, and coconut, honey, and capsicum – a real mix and range of contrasting elements
  • Finish – Bitter aftertaste initially, some tobacco leaf, some even found a bit of sawdust

I found this Benromach expression differs from what I normally associate with this distillery. This is likely due to their use of virgin oak barrels instead of their normal ex-Bourbon and sherry casks – sometimes with a touch of peat too.

Next up, we shifted to a newer player with Nc’Nean. I first encountered Nc’Nean in Nürnberg, Germany, during the February 2020 “The Village” whisky messe as part of their early launch activities. I’ve since had a chance to sample a few different batches of their core Organic Single Malt expression and the Huntress expression – Orchard Cobbler plus their Quiet Rebels line with Gordon. I had even purchased a bottle in 2022 to bring back for the Whisky Ladies! As it turns out, that particular bottle became a gift for a friend before I could host a session. So I was delighted the ladies had a chance to try this whisky… which has a truly beautiful bottle!

Nc’Nean Organic (lot BH08) 46%

  • Nose – Cod liver oil, medicinal, overripe gruit, then became fruitier, some moss, honey citrus, hard round candies, orange peel… After considerable time, it opened up into light hay then gentle flowers
  • Palate – Initially also medicinal, fire, rough and raw – hot! It was young and brash. Then, as it sat in the glass, it began to morph… think a peppery candy…
  • Finish – Salty then candy sweet!

From fishy to fruity and then remarkably from fruity to floral! Whilst it wasn’t the top pick of the trio, it was worth trying!

We closed with GlenDronach – which I normally associate with rich sherry, not peat. In this case, the barley was peated and then matured in PX and Oloroso sherry casks, as well as Port.

GlenDronach Traditionally Peated 48%

  • Nose – Rich mocha,
  • Palate – Concentrated dry fruits, lots of dates especially. Molasses, a curiously “juicy” peat, and also very sweet. Cherry pits, loads of caramel and smoke, more of that mocha, apricots
  • Finish – Bitter, wood that fades, left a minty paan-like aftertaste

It had a wonderful flavour profile – full-bodied, rich, yet not overpowering. There was a really interesting quality to this expression – one described it as a smoky liqueur – given it was both incredibly sweet and most definitely peated!

With the revisit after some time, it had a delightful ‘roasted’ quality, shifted into a delicious maple bacon / smoked meats dimension that many of us really enjoy in our peaty drams.

For most of the ladies, the GlenDronach was the clear favourite, followed by the Benromach, with the Nc’Nean lagging behind.

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BMC House of Dragons – Penderyn Hireath, Kavalan Grand Reserve 1 and 2

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The host for our Bombay Malt and Cigar evening decided the whisky tasting theme would be “House of Dragons” with a rather clever mix of Wales and Taiwan. Represented by distilleries we’ve had more than an evening or two exploring – yet never together in this way.

Here’s what was selected for our celebration of Dragons:

  • Penderyn Hireath 46%
  • Kavalan Grand Reserve No. 1 Amontillado Sherry 40%
  • Kavalan Grand Reserve No. 2 Madeira & Port 40%

Up first was a limited-edition from Penderyn distillery in Wales. We’ve tasted several Penderyn expressions – including their Penderyn Dragon range – Legend, Myth, Celt 41%. So what did we think of their “Hireath”?

Penderyn Hireath (2021) 46% – Icon of Wales #8

  • Nose – Nice and juicy, lots of orange sherbet, a bit like an orange cream stick! Floral – predominantly jasmine, some balsa wood and pine, pink and white striped peppermint candy, overall light and fruity
  • Palate – Nice spice, warming, young, and wood forward
  • Finish – Light

Overall, it was pleasant, whilst not complex, not all whiskies need to be!

With the revisit, we found nibs candies, pineapple, and just very sweet.

Here’s what the folks at Penderyn have to say about this expression:

The 8th in our ‘Icons of Wales’ series was launched in December 2021 and commemorates the wonderful Welsh word, ‘Hiraeth’. Difficult to translate into English, some say ‘yearning’ or ‘homesickness’, but the BBC’s Roy Noble summed it up very nicely as: “a longing for your homeland, your heritage and your very being”.

This whisky is an ex-Bourbon cask finish and is bottled at 46% abv, and is the first time Penderyn have released a core range single malt using mainly spirit from the pot stills, which we introduced in 2014.

TASTING NOTES

  • Nose: Elegant and floral with light oak notes, vanilla, raisins, toffee apples, citrus peel and a hint of lime.
  • Taste: A delicate smooth single malt with honeyed fruits, vanilla, cinnamon spice and a hint of nutmeg.
  • Finish: Soft honey and vanilla notes fade to a malty finish.

It was a good start to our evening of dragons!

Next up was a travel retail pair from Taiwan’s Kavalan. In the past, we’ve explored their cask strength single cask Solist line, however, this time we went for the more commercially accessible range.

Kavalan Grand Reserve No. 1 Amontillado Sherry 40%

  • Nose – Stewed plum, quite Christmasy, lots of booze soaked raisins, sherry-forward with some tannins too
  • Palate – Very woody – almost too much.
  • Finish – Very dry, wood varnish, bitter
  • Water – It may seem strange to add a few drops of water to a whisky that is already at the lowest permitted ABV of 40%. However, it was so heavy that we had to try! And it helped a bit – subdued the raisins, enabled some apricots to come forward

We don’t normally comment on colour – however, this was such a remarkable dark ruby that it was worth noting, as it matched the intensity of flavours.

What do the official tasting notes say?

Rich notes of apricot jam, dried berries,  and creamy caramel

I’d say yes to the dried berries, with water also the apricot jam, however, despite the sweetness, it wasn’t exactly creamy!

So what about the 2nd Grand Reserve?

Kavalan Grand Reserve No. 2 Madeira & Port 40%

  • Nose – Soaked alcohol prunes, green fruits like gooseberry, ground cherries, some sweet and some sour, sharp yet also honeyed, marzipaan, sugar-covered cherries, powdered sugar… that with water revealed some light maple syrup
  • Palate – Tart, cherry pits, woody, thin
  • Finish – Bitter, cigar
  • Water – It was missing something until we added water, then the Madeira and Port influences came forward

In many ways, it started out quite similar to the 1st Grand Reserve. However, with water, it was sweeter and more approachable.

Here are the official tasting notes:

Rich notes of maple syrup, toasted walnut, and woody undertones

For the most part, we would agree with the tasting notes.

And there you have it, another evening of enjoyment exploring whiskies with friends!

Curious about other experiences? Just check out these whiskies we’ve tasted from Penderyn and Kavalan.

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2025 Whisky Show – Lowland’s Annandale Man O’Words

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At London’s Whisky Show, some stands we did a quick pit stop… others we found ourselves lingering… exploring as much as we could. That’s what we did at Annandale with their unpeated “Man O’Words” range, intending to come back for the “Man O’Swords” peated range later. 

For those not familiar, this Lowland distillery has a checkered history. Tracing its origins to 1836, it changed hands in 1893 and then struggled post-World War I, closing in 1924. It was then revived by David Thomson and Teresa Church from 2007 to 2014, when it laid its first cask.

As for what we sampled?

  • Annandale Ex Bourbon Cask 812 (2018/2023) 59.5%
  • Annandale 10 year Cask 125 58.8%
  • Annandale Double Oaked Ex Bourbon Cask 504 (2018/2025) 59.8%
  • Annandale STR Ex-Red Wine Cask 335 (2017/2025) 59.6%
  • Annandale Olorosso Cask 1022 (2017/2023) 61.1%
  • Annandale Ex-Fino Cask 396 (2018/2025) 61.1%

Next up, was a special bottle aged for 10 years. It had the same fun fruit as the 5 year, however, everything was amped up. On the palate, it was robust and yet also more balanced and smooth than its younger expression, with a nice sweet spice tail.

Annandale Double Oaked Ex Bourbon Cask 504 (2018/2025) 59.8%

Pronounced old fruits and sweet spices on the nose. Deeper palate, with toast, almost like having “meat on the bones’, some tannins closing on a woody note.

Annandale STR Ex-Red Wine Cask 335 (2017/2025) 59.6%

What a difference the STR made! It was bursting with juicy red berries and baked bread, then shifted into a forest. On the palate, there was so much going on with a huge finish.

Annandale Olorosso Cask 1022 (2017/2023) 61.1% Bottle 487

Lots of fruits, all the lovely sherry elements of dried fruits, sweet spices, and more. On the palate, it was heavy with Christmas plum cake and spices. The finish was equally powerful. We added a few drops, and it transformed the whisky! From being almost overwhelming to joyful, juicy fruits – delicious!

Annandale Ex-Fino Cask 396 (2018/2025) 61.1%

Very approachable, dried raisins, plum sauce, and sweet spices.

What fun! Though these were just teasers, I’d love to explore more….

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