Shelter Point – The Collective 46%

Posted on by

In our Whisky Ladies of Mumbai original group, we have three Canadians. Yes, that is completely disproportionate, however, it just so happened that when starting the group, I knew one fellow Canadian who, like myself, has long-term adopted India as home and another settled in Mumbai who heard of our group and was interested in joining.

Yet before you conclude this is a purely Canadian club, far from it! We have women from a range of backgrounds, ages, and experiences, from professionals to entrepreneurs, we are drawn together by a common interest in exploring a dram or two or three.

Over the years, we have had women drift in and out, circumstances change, people move away and others are found where such a small, private forum of dram devotees come together to discover, debate, and drive forward a collective understanding.

Why mention this context? As we enter the midpoint of our 9th year, it seems fitting that things continue to evolve. In our January session, we had a mix of early members and new, each bringing their distinctive approach and reactions.

Which is the sentiment of The Collective. It is a mix of five Shelter Point casks aged for at least five years. Each cask was selected by a working member of Shelter Point, brought together where the hope is that the sum is greater than its parts.

This was why I planned to share this whisky with the ladies… Then when the very folks most familiar with Shelter Point couldn’t join, I shifted gears and offered a Chorlton trio.

A few months later, I was back in Mumbai and decided – why not? So opened up the Shelter Point bottles starting with this one!

Shelter Point The Collective 46% (2020)

  • Colour – Bright gold
  • Nose  – Sunshine! Honey, like a super sweet baklava with sugary syrup and nutty pistachios and pecans. Delightful. It kept evolving… slipping into sweet lemon curd, then big red, lots of fresh red cherries. There was also a hard candy with mixed berries or a red raspberry covered in powdered sugar. After even more time, there was basil and bay leaf too!
  • Palate – Spice! White peppercorn. Then grapefruit. Rather than being candy-sweet, it was actually a bit salty. Contradictory and fun, not at all light.
  • Finish – Quite herbaceous – like a sweet herbal liqueur, stevia, a lovely long finish with bay leaf
  • Water – Amped up the sea salt, joined by a nutty nougat

It was an utterly enchanting aroma, light, sweet, and joyful. The palate was such a contrast, then it closed with a wonderful finish that circled back to the delicious nose. For most, the nose and finish were fabulous with the palate a little quixotic, not quite in harmony with the other elements.

We set it aside to sample the Shelter Point Double Barrel then the 10 year cask strength… we returned to find the palate a symphony of delight – where everything all came together. Perfection.

And what do the folks at Shelter Point have to say?

At Shelter Point we’re in together. Every one of our five local staff contributes to the character and success of the distillery, so we asked each one to choose a favourite whisky cask to include in this special release that celebrates our people. The result is a delicious blend of five specially selected casks that reflect the collective spirit and passion of our Shelter Point family. All whiskies selected are at least 4 years old.

Tasting Notes:

On the nose, The Collective has distinct notes of vanilla and cinnamon with bursts of fruity flavor. The palate is spicy and fruity leading to the satisfying finish that is long with an assortment of spices, cherry wood and salt.

Whisky Facts:

  • Still: Custom-designed copper pot still
  • Base: Barley, Rye and Wheat (That’s it. Nothing else)
  • Distillation: Small-batch, 3x distilled
  • Spirit: Natural colour and non-chill filtered
  • Alcohol Content: Bottled at 46% Alc.Vol

I purchased it in November 2020 for CND$34.78 + taxes + shipping for 375 ml.

What did we try in our Shelter Point evening in Mumbai?

Interested in receiving more Whisky Lady posts? Why not follow on:

Leave a comment

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.