The English whisky scene is getting rather exciting and i for one see a very bright future indeed.. It is not so long ago that England had no full time whisky distilleries but that changed in 2006 when the first whisky distillery in almost 100 years began to distill once again. Jump foeward a few years and The Lakes distillery was born, sitting besides the river Derwent in the beautiful lake district of England.
This distillery went about its business in a quiet way and waited for the whisky itself to do the shouting.. Whilst the whisky was sleeping the distillery bought stocks of already matured whisky and brought forward The One, a blended whisky originally made up of sourced whisky from the British Isles, now however this whisky can also boast the Lakes own whisky as part of the blend.
Todays review will concentrate upon the latest offering within The One’s line of “finished” whiskies. As you might have guessed this blended whisky has had a finishing period in Moscatel wine casks sourced from Southern Spain..
Here is how The Lakes have described the whisky..
“An uplifting and fragrant whisky, The One Moscatel has been finished in hand-selected Moscatel wine casks from southern Spain. It complements a series of cask finished whiskies which demonstrate the influence oak and cask seasoning has on the flavour elevation of a singular blended whisky.
Similar in style to PX, albeit less sweet, the Moscatel wine is made with grapes from the small town of Chipiona, in the Cádiz province of Andalucía. Benefiting from the Soleo process – sun-drying the grapes before pressing them – the resulting reduction in water and relative change in sugar level alters the viscosity, flavour and aroma of the juice, giving rise to fresh and floral characters in the cask.”
Moscatel finished – The One
Distillery.. The Lakes
Region.. Lake District – England
Age.. Nas
Abv.. 46.6%
Casks.. Moscatel Wine Finished
Nose.. Floral and fruity.. There is a nice soft floral note that resonates instantly on the nose with fresh blossom, damp heather and rose petals that still hold the morning dew upon them.. Honey and fresh fruits sitting in a bowl of natural syrup, butterscotch sweets and a hint of dark chocolate sitting besides a mug of freshly brewed coffee.
Palate.. More of those fresh fruits linger with some citrus bitterness and a soft char note, burnt toffee and an earthy Manuka honey flavour gives very little sweetness.
Finish.. Lingering spice with a soft bitter sweetness
Thoughts.. I have always been a fan of these blended expressions from The Lakes and this one is just another well blended expression that they can be proud of..
There will of course be some out there that wont agree but that is to be expected, for me this carries a well balanced feel and to some extent a blend that offers plenty of complexity.. This is in no way a blend that is just thrown together with no thought..
Sample provided for review purpose by the Lakes Distillery..
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