A Single Malt simply means malts from the same distillery. Unless it is specifically designated as a “Single Cask”, it could mean wildly different types of casks used in order to achieve the desired outcome.
In the case of St Kilian’s Thirteen Signature Edition, it is a mix of five different virgin casks – put differently, these are all “fresh” casks that never held any other liquid like Bourbon or Sherry before being used to mature the whisky. Master Blender Mario Rudolf chose Palatinate and Hungarian oak combined with “unique” woods like wild robinia (mock acacia), chestnut, and cherry. The oldest whisky was approx 6 years and the youngest 3 years. All used Scottish peat smoke malt with 54 ppm – hence this falls into St Kilian’s peated range.
In Scotland, there are regulations that stipulate that only Oak wood may be used, however, the rules are considerably more relaxed in countries like the USA, Ireland, or Germany. This enables considerable experimentation – from apple wood chips to chestnut! This expression clearly falls into the “experimental” category!
So how did we go about exploring this tasting set? We began by calibrating our palates – cracking open the delicious Classic “Mild & Fruity” 46% (the lone black bottle ie unpeated whisky) before shifting to peat with the balanced Peaty “Rich & Smoky” 46%. It was a perfect way to start!
We then tasted the ‘Thirteen’ to get a feel for the combination before going step by step through each component and then revisiting the ‘Thirteen’ again. What a super cool concept – sharing transparently the five different elements that go into creating the Signature Thirteen expression.
So let’s take you on our tasting journey…
Signature Edition ‘Thirteen’ (2016/18/19 – 2022) 53.9%
- Nose – Yummy! We were immediately greeted by maple glazed smoked bacon, a campfire with fatty bacon, charred peppers, cherries, a hint of wood
- Palate – Quite a contrast – cinnamon bark, bittersweet, light ginger, some peppers, oak, mild peat, and overall quite dry
- Finish – A spice burn, slightly ashy
- Water – Makes a big difference – brings out the fruit and cream, shifting from dry to juicy.
Overall we found the nose really quite wonderful, with the palate having a curious yet interesting character. This is no “easy” dram but certainly one to experience!
32% of Thirteen: Virgin Hungarian Oak (2016 – 2022) 61.3% Ungarischer Eiche
We began with the largest component – virgin Quercus Petraea aka Hungarian Oak.
On the nose, it had a fresh and clean approach – like shaved wood that then deepened into a nutty aroma – particularly Brazil nuts. As for the taste? Warm and really quite fabulous, joined by a prickly spice. Surprisingly smooth and mature for a mere 6-year-old – and that too at cask strength!
We speculated that this may also be a base for their Peated Rich & Smoky – at least we found elements of what we enjoy in that blend also in it. What a promising start!
27% of Thirteen: Virgin Chestnut/Kastanie (2019 – 2022) 53.4%
We moved on to Chestnut – a wood that outside of Scotland, some whisky distilleries are increasingly exploring as an alternative to Oak – at least for some time. I’ve tried several experiments from Sweden’s Agitator to Ireland’s Method & Madness to Germany’s Aureum.
We found it more subtle than anticipated. On the nose, it was like new fresh chestnuts before roasting – green and unripe – fragrant with a hint of fruit and only the lightest touch of sweet peat. Whereas on the palate? Quite interesting, with a substantive texture with a light spice spike at the back. Then it finished with herbal elements with a touch of bitterness.
Overall we found this one quite mild with a smooth warmth that lingers. Rather nice!
27% of Thirteen: Virgin Wild Robinia / Wilde Robine (2019 – 2022) 61.8%
We moved on to a wood called “Wild Robinia” – an Eastern European timber, considered a “mock Acacia” – a tropical timber, native to Africa, Australia, and South America.
We had no idea what to expect, however, suffice to say, this one was VERY different and hard to describe. The aroma was a bit elusive whereas the palate? Hmmm…. It was strong, forceful with an “in your face” harshness, heavy bitter roasted nuts. Curiously, it reminded us a bit of a strawberry stomach medicine.
Though we had only 2cl between the two of us, we found this one definitely needed a dash of water. Certainly helps… however overall this one wasn’t for us – at least as a stand-alone.
We struggled to understand why to add something so brash as the Wilde Robine into the mix… until we finished tasting all five elements and revisited the Thirteen.
11% of Thirteen: Virgin Palatinate Oak / Pfälzer Eiche (2018 – 2022) 60.6%
We then moved on to a more traditional wood – Oak – more specifically Palatinate Oak from SouthWestern Germany.
Ahh… nice! Back to more traditional aromas – mild and fruity like a fruit stew. On the palate, we found sweet spices, warm with a mild almost “numbing” astringency on the finish.
This was a return to more familiar territory. And whilst it was a smaller portion of the Thirteen, we thought perhaps it added some of the fruit!
3% of Thirteen: Virgin Cherry/Kirsche (2018 – 2022) 61.7%
We closed our “deconstruction” exploration with Cherry wood. St Kilian has some company experimenting with this wood – both Teeling and Woodford Reserve have expressions that are partly finished in Cherry. Reputed to be more porous than oak leading to intense flavours.
So what did we find?
Woooaaah! Smells like Cherry wood, freshly chopped, green, carnation flower, dank, musty… and on the palate? Varnish, so dry it made one almost “pucker up!”, more of that carnation, green and unripe fruits, wood polish, bitter cherry cough syrup\. Followed by a smokey finish.
On its own, this wouldn’t work but we could see how this whisky would add an interesting counterpart.
100% Signature Edition ‘Thirteen’ (2016/18/19 – 2022) 53.9% Revisited
We reflected on each of the five elements. On their own, we could see real promise in both the Hungarian and Palatinate Oaks and also the Chestnut… On its own the WIld Robinia didn’t work, however, with the revisit, we could understand how it added depth to the character. Similarly, the cherry solo would be too intense however with just a touch, that distinctive aroma augments rather than detracts.
Clearly, this is an example where the sum is greater than its parts! What a fabulous experience to have an opportunity to deconstruct the St Kilian Signature Edition Thirteen!
Here is what the folks at St Kilian have to say:
The special thing about the smoky Signature Edition THIRTEEN is its unusual composition. Because it is a composition of five different wood species. Thus, in addition to Palatinate and Hungarian oak, unique woods such as wild robinia (false acacia), chestnut and cherry were used. Distillates from 2016, 2018 and 2019, made from 54 ppm Scottish peat smoke malt, matured in the five virgin-fresh wood barrels to create a full-bodied, color-intensive single malt with a strong character.
And their official tasting notes:
- Appearance – Amber
- Aroma – Intense fruit notes of ripe cherries and apricots harmonize with creamy vanilla, fine peat smoke and a juicy BBQ note, complemented by aromatic wood tones and spicy oak.
- Taste – Juicy apricots, red cherries and sweet vanilla cream combine with warming notes of wood, finely spicy oak, white pepper and a hint of ginger, subtly wrapped in aromatic peat smoke.
- Finish – The creamy, spicy blend of dark fruit jam and fine tannins has a pleasantly long lingering finish with warming peat smoke, subtle dry ash notes and a hint of cocoa.
Many thanks to the good folks at St Kilian for sharing this unique way to experience their most recent expression!
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So what goes into creating an expression like this? The folks at St. Kilian shared that their Classic is a combination of different ex-bourbon casks (70%) and Pedro Ximénez and Oloroso sherry casks (30%).
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