M&H Elements | Whisky Lady

Years ago, a friend shared a small sample of new-make spirit from Milk & Honey. It was quite promising, and though only one element of a complex and creative equation that goes into producing a good dram, an intriguing start.

Fast forward to Nurnberg’s The Village Whisky Fest in 2024. My friends and I were curious about this distillery, so we signed up for the Masterclass with Shilton Almeida. Previously with Paul John from Goa, Shilton is known to spin yarns as good as any Scotsman, so we knew we were in for an amusing and educational time!

Before us were five drams…. Shilton shared a philosophy of working with the five different climates of Israel.

So, what is the story with their Elements expressions?

The M&H Elements series is a composition of flavors and aromas assembled from meticulously selected casks that bring forward characters enhanced by the casks’ wood, origin, and history. Each expression in this series begins with the M&H Classic Single Malt Whisky and is complemented with whisky matured in various hand-picked, superlative, and quality oak casks, culminating in a beautiful natural color, impressive flavors, and a well-balanced single malt. The M&H Elements manifest the combination of traditional distillation methods with rapid but graceful hot climate maturation.

M&H Elements Pomegranate Wine Cask Special Edition 46%

We began with something that was already unique – a pomegranate wine cask! What did we think?

Nose – Surprisingly rum-like, very sweet and dessert-like, followed by a hint of pomegranate with its slightly bitter element from the seeds, then shifted back into a heavy honey, dark chocolate with a hint of marmalade
Palate – A lovely texture, rolling about the mouth with fruits and sugars, with a touch of sourness too
Finish – Light, juicy red berries

This was a delightful fresh summery whisky. Shilton shared how it was initially aged in ex-bourbon casks, before spending six months in ex-pomegranate wine casks, crafting a rather unique experience. Does it work? Yes, rather well!

Shilton shared our next expression was matured in an STR cask – Shaved, Toasted & Re-chared in an ex Red wine barrique.

M&H Single Cask 55.5%

Nose – Deliciously sweet, honey, vanilla, and guava
Palate – Wood spice, tropical fruits like bananas and mangoes, sweet, and spice and everything nice!
Finish – Long and strong, really lasts with subtle fruits

Now this one is rather juicy! It was described as an “easy sipping dram”, yet with enough of a spice kick to keep it interesting. And whilst STR casks are not necessarily my favourite, in this case it worked with an enjoyable influence of the red wine barrique.

We moved on to the Apex terroir expressions, exploring the impact of both the cask and the environment, selecting distinctly different conditions in Israel.

We began with the expression matured in the Dead Sea – the lowest location on Earth, where the M&H share that

the air pressure and high temperatures practically squeeze flavour from our casks, resulting in an intense dram that clearly reflects the climatic terroir the whisky endured.

Full of minerality and spice as well as a well rounded sweetness, this is a unique insight into the most extreme exploration of whisky terroir ever attempted.

M&H APEX Dead Sea 56.5%

Nose – So much going on here! A wonderful, rich perfume, vanilla, chocolate, joined by a marvelous marmalade
Palate – It had an “aged” feel, dangerous, full of spice, more of the marmalade joined by sweet spices and something savoury too
Finish – Very loong, from sweet spices to saline, most enjoyable

This is the kind of expression that demands one to slow down and pay attention. This was NOT the kind of whsky one wishes to encounter at a festival with a mere sniff and swish. It had a lovely mix of sweet, spice, savoury and saline.

Their official tasting notes indicate:

Aroma: Sweet with French vanilla and mocha nestled within a cigar box.
Palate: Gentle black tea is followed by a rush of warm spices such as cinnamon, coriander seeds, and dark cocoa powder.
Finish: Long and satisfying with candied ginger and cloves, joined by characteristically minerally sea salt

Shilton shared that this expression was 70% ex-Bourbon, 25% STR, and 5% virgin oak.

A most intriguing and enjoyable dram!

The M&H Apex Sherry was our next whisky, matured in Olorosso PX casks…

M&H APEX Sherry 53.6%

Nose – Full sherry aromas, heavy dark plums, rum raisins, spice, a delicious Christmas cake
Palate – Wow! A robust round rich and chewy sherry with some lovely elements
Finish – Another rather delicious dram
Water – Helps make it even juicier, more well-rounded as it opened more

This was the most voluptuous of the quintet! Indulgent and enjoyable.

We closed with the Apex Peated expression, finished in a fortified red wine cask.

M&H APEX Peated Fort Red Wine 55.3%

Nose – There is a sweet marshmallow initially, then it reveals the peat, ashy yet fruity
Palate – Very ashy, shifts into a meaty, sweet BBQ sauce, very chewy
Finish – Strong, the ash continues

The peat was initially subtle on the nose yet ashy and dry on the palate. A conversation dram. Challenging. Curious. And a rather smart way to close our Masterclass!

The official tasting notes are:

Nose: Red dried fruits, waxy with notes of wine cork and cigar box. Sweet peat and oak.
Palate: Chewy, peaty, and spicy with caramel, dark fruits, and a hint of smoky tannins.
Finish: Long with warm spices and cocoa. Oaky and peaty with orange peel.

Well worth exploring all five expressions! An informative and entertaining Masterclass – many thanks!

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