Whisky friends just outside Nuremberg know how much I love Ethiopian cuisine – it is one of my favourite “comfort” foods! So when they stumbled upon an event raising funds for charities in Africa that combined Ethiopian food and whisky, we simply had to go!

It was my first introduction to the team behind Hawelti – Marcel Heuer and Negassty Abraha – who are doing impressive work! They were joined by Markus Giesbert of African Spirits, who supplied, sourced, or was even part of producing the spirits we explored.

This was their 6th event, where we walked into a community of supporters of different ages, coming together over passions to enjoy good food, explore interesting whiskies, whilst raising funds for good causes.

6th Benefiz-Whisky-Tasting mit afrikanischem Whisky und äthiopischem Essen

It was such an interesting variety of spirits, grains, and single malts!

1. Projekt 3 Ethiopian Beer Brandy 40%
2. Projekt 4 Acacia barrel aged Beer Brandy 40%
3. Boplaas 5 year Single Grain 43.6%
4. Heimer 2021 Grain 43%
5. Three Ships 12 year Single Malt Peated 46.3%
6. Ondjaba Single Edition No 1 Triple Grain 54.8% from Namibia
7. Bains 18 year Oloroso 50.5%
8. Projekt 01 Strathmill 10 year Hawelti Anniversary 65.7%

Projekt 3 Ethiopian Beer Brandy (29 Jan 2022 – 01 Mar 2022) 40% 160 bottles. ~Eur 40 for 500ml

We began with a spirit rather than whisky…  A product of necessity to avoid wasting Ethiopian Walia beer that would expire during the coronavirus pandemic. Rather than waste, Syelle & Alemash,  Severin Simon aka Feinbrenneri Simon’s, and African Spirits set about converting a problem into a new project – making spirits! As the Bierbrand was being poured, we watched a video on its making. Markus shared that nearly 5,000 bottles of Walia beer went into making their Projekts. What did we think?

• Colour – Clear
• Nose – There was no doubt this came from beer! It was also fruity, much more like sniffing schnapps or a new make spirit, yet interesting
• Palate – To be honest, it was a bit peculiar, smooth, like having heavy alcohol juice, cold potatoes, sweet
• Finish – Nothing except spirit

This was certainly an unexpected start to our evening. Once we adjusted to the spirit, it was quite pleasant and distinctive.

Projekt 4 Acacia barrel aged beer brandy 40% ~Eur 42 for 500 ml

We progressed to the next experiment, which was also beer brandy that was aged for 22 months in Acacia barrels which previously held rum. This Projekt was considered a ‘precursor’ to whisky… stepping in that direction.

The colour was pale straw, the aromas of very old bananas, well past their prime, even a bit of mouldy hay. And the taste? Well… it reminded me of cough drops from the former East Germany that are effective but not so tasty.

Some experiments work, and some are not so successful. I would say kudos for effort in trying to rescue the beer before expiry, however, this isn’t my tipple.

Boplaas 5 year Small Batch Single Grain 43.6% ~Eur 40 for 700 ml

Our journey then shifted from beer brandy to single-grain from Boplaas, a winery and distillery based in a few locations along the Klein Karoo & Garden Route in South Africa. Whilst primarily known for their wine and port, their spirits range from brandy to gin, single grain to single malt. Like many warmer climates, the Angels Share is high. Though 5 years is quite a short period of maturation for a grain whisky, in South Africa, the maturation is accelerated by the heat and evaporation.

• Nose – Flower power, a lovely perfume, joined by tropical fruits, some almond paste, then settled into pineapple and mangoes
• Palate – A light, easy drinking dram, sweet, subtle, and enjoyable
• Finish – Limited with a touch of wood, yet sweet

We had a sigh of happiness. As whisky enthusiasts, this is more in our direction than the Beer Brandy experiments.

What more do we know? After aging in ex-bourbon barrels, this single grain was finished in ex-Brandy casks.

Heimer 2021 Grain 43% ~Eur 49, not available in Europe

We continued with another grain, shifting to Heimer from Qualito Craft distillery in Phalaborwa, South Africa. Unlike a whisky that leaves the barrel behind when bottled, this single grain had wood shavings in the bottle, to continue to infuse the spirit with further flavour. The shavings came from a broken cask that took on a new life as part of an experiment.

• Nose – Mmmm vanilla, quite inviting on the nose, a nice wood perfume, caramel, fruity
• Palate – Very sweet, like a dessert whisky or even liqueur, smooth, distinctly different
• Finish – Short with an odd varnish end, quite dry

We joked that this was like having a vanilla whisky liqueur not grain. This would not be for a traditional whisky drinker, however is an interesting experience. Unlike some experiments, this was worth trying…

Three Ships 12 year Single Malt 46.3% ~Eur 49 for 700 ml

We next turned to our first single malt of the evening. Coming from the James Sedwick Distillery in South Africa, master distiller Andy Watts aims to bring to the world a peated whisky in a Scottish style. The peated barley is from Europe (30 ppm), then was distilled using pot stills, followed by maturing in 2nd and 3rd fill American oak casks. The thinking behind using re-fill casks is to counter the intensity from maturing ‘faster’ in a warmer climate than Scotland.

What did we think?

• Nose – Unlike the earlier tipples, the first whiff was certainly in “whisky” territory! Vanilla, wood, sweet… yet also had a heady quality like walking into a room full of varnish, polish or oil-based paint
• Palate – A hint of tar, woody, very dry, deeper dry, with a sharp bite of spice, some smoked herbs
• Finish – There with a sweet honey and sour or tart citrus quality
• Water – We thought to see what water would do… Made it a bit sweeter with some hints of fruits emerging

I can imagine this would do better in Europe than in Scotland as it clearly is far from a Scottish style.

Ondjaba Single Edition No 01 Triple Grain 54.5% ~Eur 80 for 700 ml

We moved from South Africa to Namibia with Ondjaba. What is the story here?

Ondjaba gets its name from the indigenous Ovambo word meaning ‘Elephant’.

For our various editions, we use a variety of grainbills from Maize, Barely, Wheat, Rye and Mahangu (pearl millet).
All are smoked over elephant dung, then aged in various casks – virgin casks and our own former wine barrels under the Namibian sun.

Yes, you read that correctly. In lieu of peat, the distillery uses elephant poo to dry the grains.

• Colour – Like coffee
• Nose – Instant coffee pellets, wood, sharp alcohol
• Palate – Bitter, burnt spice, lots of coffee, metallic, very unique and difficult to describe
• Finish – Stays with that coffee metallic element
• Water – No change on the nose, helps mellow the palate a bit

Having spent decades in India, I know well how important cow dung is as a source of fuel and more. Food cooked over cow dung patties have a distinctive flavour that is quite delicious. So in principal, I wasn’t averse to the concept of elephant dung.

All our faces said it – this was not a dram for us.

Bains 18 year Oloroso 50.5% ~Eur 190 for 1 litre

Before this evening, if you had said “Name an African whisky”, I would have immediately responded with Bains – the grain whiskies from James Sedgwick Distillery.

• Nose – Fresh and inviting, clear sherry elements, lots of fruits – including fresh dates, sweet spices, had an almost restrained elegance
• Palate – Lovely sherry influence, soft, nuanced… yet no pushover. There was a lovely interplay of sweet and spice.
• Finish – Lingers with gentle, sweet spices and hint of wood

Now we are down to business! By far, this was the best dram of the evening. We thoroughly enjoyed the Bains and were happy to close our evening on this note.

Projekt 01 Strathmill 10 year Hawelti Anniversary 65.7% ~Eur 80 for 500 ml

The evening was apparently NOT over yet! We returned to where we started with the Projekt whiskies. Why? This was a special bottle in collaboration with Hawelti to commemorate their 10 years, with each bottle also triggering a Eur 10 donation to support Hawelti’s initiatives in Africa. What more do we know?

Distillery: Strathmill
Distilled: 14.01.2014
Bottling: 14.01.2024
Cask No. 800362: 2014 – 2020 (Matured in ex-Bourbon Cask)
Cask No. 7 – 9 (Refill): 2020 – 2024 (Triple Cask Finish – Acacia / Bourbon / Sherry)
Number of bottles: 55

For us, it was simply one too many, and aside from jotting down ‘dragon fire’, we simply stopped. We preferred to reflect on the remarkable range of experiences the evening delivered.

The event closed with an auction – selling the remainder of the drams sampled in the evening plus a further donation. There were several items on sale too – from honey to spices to crafts. Naturally, we walked out with full bellies, lighter pocketbooks, and smiles on our faces.

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