Shelter Point 2017 Winter Release 57.2%

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My love affair with Shelter Point from Vancouver Island continues… courtesy of a fellow Canadian from British Columbia who picked this bottle up on a recent jaunt from Vancouver to Mumbai.

Here is what we thought…

Photo: Paula McGlynn

Shelter Point Cask Strength 2017 Winter Release 57.2% (Bottle 594/1088)

  • Nose – Lots of sweet cereals, heavy honey, toasted nuts, a bit of spicy chilli, honey comb, started to take on quite a fruity dimension – warm, ripe summer fruits, honey drizzled oats or barley, lightly floral shifting back into warm freshly baked pie
  • Palate – Sooooooo good! A happy whisky with a nice kick… one that we were simply too busy enjoying to dissect the different elements of the palate… all I can recall is the lovely baked goods, light cinnamon, apples continued…
  • Finish – Very long, a bit ‘tingly’ with a hint of sweet grass
  • Water – You can, makes it even more “happy” yet it also isn’t needed either

It reminded us of a Canadian summer night – after the heat of the day, a slight drop in temperature, a light breeze, the smell of sunshine fading into sunset with warm grasses, fruits and a hint of honeyed flowers.

What I loved most is it had that “Let me wrap you up in a warm welcoming blanket” quality – just more pronounced with more kick and character than the standard Single Malt at 46%.

As always, the biggest problem with Shelter Point is it is simply far too inviting and has a dangerously bad habit of “disappearing” quickly in happy consumption!

I was curious to know more so wrote to the folks over at Shelter Point. Here is what distiller Leon Webb had to say:

Cask Strength 2017:

  • Nose: An enticing aroma of candied sweets and creamy treats, lattice apple pie with vanilla custard and homemade ice cream, candy floss, praline chocolates, hazelnut and a hint of white pepper
  • Palate: Sweet and juicy fruits, honey, pecan pie, brown sugar and cinnamon
  • Finish: Rum raisins and sweet tobacco 

Shelter Point Cask Strength Whisky 2017 Facts:

  • Base: Two-row barley and rye
  • Distillation: Small-batch, 2x distilled and non-chilled filtered
  • Alcohol Content: Bottled at 57.2% Alc.Vol
  • Bottle Size: 750ml
  • Batch Size: 1088 bottles
  • Packaging: Classic Tennessee-style bottle features Vinolok glass closure and original engraving of Shelter Point Farm created by renowned illustrator Steve Noble

Here are a few other Shelter Point’s sampled til date:

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Minis – Shelter Point Double Barrelled 50%

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Ever since a whisky sampling companion picked up this Shelter Point mini in BC, I’ve been ridiculously impatient to try it. My previous experience with Shelter Point has been very positive – there is something just so enjoyable about their single malt that is simply comforting – the exact dram you want to settle down and relax with.

And this one? Just like our other minis, it plays with a finish… in this case quite unique – after maturing in French oak casks, it was finished in a blackberry wine from Coastal Black Estate Winery near Mount Washington in the Comox valley on Vancouver Island. I was last in the area for a cousin’s wedding and can attest to it being a truly beautiful part of Canada.

And while I’ve never had their blackberry wine, I couldn’t wait to try what it did to this Shelter Point whisky.

Shelter Point Double Barrelled 50%

  • Nose – Wow! Blackberry compote, black wine gummy, light spice, a cassis kir, nice dark berry, almost like a rich port, with a bit of sourness too. Very interesting, juicy fruity without being overly sweet with a very natural quality, jammy, fermented barley sugars, a bit dusty like a granary, creamy, salted caramel banana, peanut brittle, vanilla
  • Palate – Spice cinnamon bark, while has character it was quite linear from palate to finish, some light sweet fruit
  • Finish – A simple yet nice black raspberry finish that just gentle rides off into the sunset
  • Water – While there is a more character without water, it is good to try with… the water dampens down the nose. As it settled the berries came out even more… just needed a bit of coaxing. Really quite nice, softer and  revealing that wonderful “enveloping you like a comfortable blanket” quality which makes Shelter Point so enjoyable

We set it aside and returned to chocolate chips, a wonderful mandarin or clementine perfumed orange.

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

Our first Double Barreled Whisky is a special collaboration with Vancouver Island’s Coastal Black Estate Winery. We hand-selected two of our best Single Malt Whisky casks and finished them in two French Oak wine barrels, previously home to Coastal Black’s Blackberry Wine. Aged in our American Oak for six years, and then finished for 1126 hours in the flavourful French Oak, Shelter Point Double Barreled Whisky is a sensational marriage of spirits.

  • A nose of brandied bananas, sweet toffee and caramel, with a marvelous hint of lemon sherbet and tobacco leaf.
  • Salted caramel continues to the palate alongside golden treacle and a dash of white pepper.
  • With water you can find youth in Jolly Rancher sweets, cola, and a creamy vanilla finish.

Our fabulous finishes minis eve included:

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Minis – Nomad Outland Whisky 41.3%

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Many of us have a bit of “Nomad” in us… a wandering spirit that takes us from beyond the land of our birth. No surprise, some whiskies also take a little jaunt too… in this case from Scotland to Jeerez, Spain.

We sampled it in a lovely relaxed evening exploring a few minis… all of which had a bit of a boost through finishes – in this case Pedro Ximenes. And what did we think? Read on…

Nomad Outland Whisky 41.3%

  • Nose – Greeted by great big luscious caramel toffee. Possibly a bit of cream Amaratto? An interesting sweet and sour, stewed fruits especially peach, shifting into almost overripe fruits… then allspice, nutmeg, cinnamon… apple pie with nuts, especially hazelnut, doughy, baked pineapple. After the 1st sip, nicely restrained, vanilla. Much later shifted to orange bitters. Sip again, back to caramel pecan pie… Sip again then citrus…. and a long time later boiled sweets. How fabulous!
  • Palate – Pure applesauce with jaggery, a bit tart too, some tannins, stewed fruits. Quite light almost like sugar water, not much body but very refreshing.
  • Finish – Subtle finish, quite pleasant, light spice, anise and lime zest

What a perfect summer afternoon dram. We thought it might be rather nice chilled – as in chilling the bottle not adding ice.

So what do we know about this whisky? According their website, this whisky blend is a collaboration between master distiller Richard Paterson and expert Sherry producers Gonzalez Byass.

They share that it is:

made with a selection of over 30 malt and grain whiskies aged between 5 and 8 years old, which are blended together and matured in Sherry butts in Scotland for three years. Following that, the whisky is shipped off to Jerez, where it is finished in Pedro Ximénez casks for a year before it is bottled. Richard Paterson and Gonzalez Byass’ master distiller Antonio Flores experimented with different Sherry casks, including Oloroso and Fino, but ultimately decided on the Pedro Ximénez casks for this enticing expression.

And what do they have to say about the whisky profile?

  • Bright, topaz coloured whisky
  • It has a unique aroma with malty notes, reminiscent of oak and sherry due to its ageing in american oak barrels.
  • Smooth and elegant on the palate. With prominent flavours of raisins, honey and distinctive bouquet as a result of the finishing of the whisky in Pedro Ximénez sherry barrels.
  • A long finish, pleasant
  • With hints of vanilla and dried fruits. A very elegant whisky with a complex aftertaste.

Our minis “finishes” eve included:

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Minis – Glen Scotia Double Cask 46%

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I will admit, I didn’t really know what to expect with this one. My minis sampling cohort had picked up a set in London more than a year or so ago – sparked mostly by a “What the heck! Let’s try a set from Cambleton.” Then this extra bottle somehow made its way back to Mumbai too!

The double cask in this case is  PX Sherry and Bourbon. And it just so happened to kick off our minis evening exploring a few different finishes.

Glen Scotia Double Cask 46%

  • Nose – Pear and apple combine like the New Zealand hybrid papple! Or raw guava…. with a lovely honey vanilla, fresh, then caramel stroopwafel, shifting into a Christmas pudding or mince pie, sweet spices, orange… After tasting, delicious baklava dripping in honey, nuts, doughy, cinnamon. Then shifted to dusty vanilla rose. Kept moving back and forth between citrus and white fruits, hard core treacle and denser rich cake. Wonderful!
  • Palate – Strong character – spice, more of that Christmasy flavours – this time a Christmas orange with cloves, some wood, some real depth without being too “heavy” and sweet, a bit dry too
  • Finish – Bitter spice, long with black pepper

I will admit to having very modest expectations and was completely impressed. What a fabulous range of aromas, robust palate, citrus then morphing between pastries and citrus oranges and back to treacle.

Glen Scotia Double Cask is their “entry” level whisky before shifting into a range of age statements. Here is what they have to say about this whisky:

Our Double Cask is matured in the finest first fill bourbon barrels before being finished for up to twelve months in Pedro Ximenez sherry casks producing this outstanding single malt whisky that provides the perfect balance of rich spicy fruits, overlaid with the characteristic sea spray and vanilla oak finish for which the house of Glen Scotia is famous.

  • Nose – Amber. Very sweet. Initially it is all creme caramel, caramelised fruit sugars, wood sugar, toffee and fudge before some apple and peach come through. In time a charred note of bourbon with a pleasing dusty dryness. Has some power.
  • Palate – Sweet start and quite fat and though the alcohol gives a little tongue-tingling buzz the result is a good mid-palate weight. The dry distillery character is there still, but there is now depth to counter. Water slightly dismantles the different elements, but adds some dried mint.
  • Finish – Deep and dark.

What a terrific start to our minis sampling – set the bar high with substance. And now I cannot wait to try a small sample set of Glen Scotia minis waiting in the wings for another session…

Our Fabulous Finishes Minis eve included:

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Minis with fabulous finishes – Glen Scotia, Nomad, Shelter Point

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Believe it or not, we had a problem of plenty… lots of different minis to potentially explore picked up our several trips.

A tasting companion neatly organized into different possible sets and the one we elected to try was whiskies with finishes… we initially planned to sample four but in the end we were content with just these three:

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Whisky Lady – April 2018

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Another marvellous malty month! Where all three tasting groups met… and I unforgivably missed one! However made up with more whisky adventures.

So what all mischief did we get up to in April?

Photo: The Whisky Barrel

The absolute highlight was a once in a lifetime opportunity to try a 64 year old whisky!

Our Bombay Malt & Cigar group explore Lost Distilleries Trio from the Classic range:

  • Towiemore 43% – The evening favourite – think apple crumble meets malt!
  • Gerston 43% – Seaside brine, bitter sweet, peat and spice
  • Stratheden 43% – Humid, citrus, chocolate… long finish

Whereas our Whisky Ladies Islay Adventures

Plus a few interesting evenings:

Plus a set of no less than seven Gin gin gins!

The balance of the month’s posts were all catching up on earlier tasting sessions…

Our Bombay Malt & Cigar gents explored whiskies from Japan:

Our original club’s revisited:

And the last fleeting impression from Whisky Live Singapore 2017:

Curious to know more? Check out recent Whisky Lady’s monthly missives:

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Lost Distillery – Stratheden Classic 43%

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Stratheden Distillery, from the Auchtermuchty in Fife, was around for approximately 100 years – officially from 1829 – 1926 and quite possibly prior to that as illegal stills. It was purely family owned – the Bonthrone family – whose founder Alexander Bonthrone ran the place from when he established it at 31 years until 1890 – a remarkable 60+ years!

You can read more about the distillery story here…. however our attention turned to the whisky….

Stratheden Classic 43%

  • Nose – It was exceptionally humid, like sniffing a very damp cloth, yet behind that was lots of honey, light yet sharp notes, some citrus, yet that musty almost chalky quality remained. After sipping and leaving it for some time, there was spice with burnt orange
  • Palate – Soft, well rounded, rather a nice mouthful, a hint of dark chocolate, bitter – enough to make one pucker, overall quite subtle
  • Finish – Cinnamon spice with the longest finish of the three whiskies sampled

Overall this was one that wouldn’t stand out as “oh wow!” but went from “Hmm… not so sure about this one” from the aroma to “Hmm… actually rather nice” on the palate to “Oh… hey that’s really rather surprisingly solid” with the finish. And kept improving the longer it was in the glass and the more one sipped.

What do the Lost Distillery folks have to say about it?

Malty, orange peel, chocolate, peat

Here is the Lost Distillery Trio that we sampled:

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Lost Distillery – Gerston Classic 43%

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“What was once lost… has now been found!” Or so it would seem.. whisky wise that is! All part of the initiative to re-construct or in their terms “re-interpret” whiskies from lost distilleries closed years ago.

After checking out the Towiemore, we moved on to Gerston – which opened and closed then open and closed again (1796-1882 & 1886-1914). We sampled the Classic version…

Gerston Classic 43%

  • Nose – Pure seaside! Lots of brine, sea salt, caramel, a hint of smoke, toffee covered almonds. The salt spray subdues after time….
  • Palate – Soft, dry, bitter, lots of sweetness too, yet more than anything very dry with some  peat
  • Finish – A spicy finish – much more than anticipated – with lots of cinnamon

What did we think?

Hmmm…. I do believe that one mentioned “Talisker’s bastard child” or an Orkney offshoot…. this from a whisky aficionado who decidedly does NOT care for briney maritime style drams.

However if that’s your preferred style Gerston  might just be up your alley.

Here is what the folks over at Lost Distillery have to say about Gerston:

  • Ripe fruit, toffee, smoke & spice

Here is the Lost Distillery Trio that we sampled:

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Lost Distillery – Towiemore Classic 43%

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Once upon a time there was a distillery in the Parish of Botriphnie outside of Dufftown. Whilst on our planet a mere thirty years (1898-1931), Peter Dawson’s endeavour enjoyed “a fine reputation as an excellent pure malt whisky.”

During its scant existence, it was a well travelled… Dawson’s whisky was selected for the pleasure of the Prince of Wales, later George V, on the maiden voyage of HMS Indomitable to Canada in 1907 and Captain Scott took it on his Terra Nova expedition to the South Pole in 1910.

You can read more about Towiemore’s history  on the Lost Distillery website.

What we cared about was the whisky…

Towiemore Classic 43%

  • Nose – Musty, sweet with a hint of leather, lots of apple crumble, ginger bread, caramel tart apple, slightly bitter with a bit of dish rag. After some time pure applesauce morphing into peaches
  • Palate – Nice spice, very easy drinking yet with enough going on to make it enjoyable, lots of red apples, very accessible
  • Finish – Light but there, pleasant yet closes bitter

One of our tasting companions admitted how this whisky was much better than he had expected – particularly on the palate vs what the nose seemed to indicate – particularly from the musty dish rag dimensions.

For most, this was the most accessible and enjoyable of the three Lost Distillery whiskies we tried. A good one to settle down and just imbibe….

Here is how the Lost Distillery folks describe a piece of Towiemore’s story….

Towiemore’s fresh new make spirit was filled predominantly into Sherry Butts, although Hogsheads and some plain oak casks were also used to offer a slightly different variations in character. These casks were stored in a ten-bay range of single storey bonded stores of the traditional style. Once sufficiently matured, these casks were transported by rail to Leith and Glasgow, or to grocers to be sold singularly in the local market. In 1902 Dawson sent an order of eighteen wagons full of casks to Glasgow. This was probably the first batch of Towiemore!

The Towiemore spirit contained in these casks was a distinguished whisky of mid-to-long finish. Cereal notes are present on the nose due to the use of flavoursome barley, with a hint of earthy heather and smoke caused by local peat. The Towie Burn produced a smooth base for the whisky, full of minerals. Vienna Yeast ensured Towiemore was infused with a citrus zest, while the long necks and ascending lyne arms of the stills embodied the whisky with a long finish of walnuts and almonds. Maturation in Sherry Butts produced a surge of creamy sherry taste coupled with lucid notes of fruitcake and sweet spice.

Here is the Lost Distillery Trio that we sampled:

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Lost Distillery Trio – Towiemore, Gerston, Stratheden

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I first encountered Lost Distillery via La Maison du Whisky in Singapore… and first had an opportunity to sample their wares at WhiskyLive Singapore in 2016. Ewan Henderson, Global Brand Ambassador, kindly regaled tales and anecdotes, sharing a passion for bringing whisky history to a new re-interpreted life!

Our whisky host for the evening picked these up at La Maison du Whisky in Singapore and focused on a trio from their “Classic” range.

So what all did our Bombay Malt & Cigar gents sample?

If you are curious about my earlier encounter, read on:

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