Chardonnay

Hillwood Chardonnay Cask

Reviewed by: Nick

Tasmanian = check.

Single cask = check.

Cask strength = check.

Ex-wine barrel = check.

From a small distillery you’ve probably never heard of = check.

Surely I’ve written this exact review before, right? WRONG! Because this whisky is quite unlike anything going around at the moment!

Hillwood Distillery, based just north of Launceston, is the creation of father and sons team: Paul, Ollie, Daniel and Joel Herron. Inspired by their love of creating things, they decided single malt whisky was a product they could all get on board with. Together, they began to lay down small barrels in 2018.

This particular bottle is one of the first Hillwood whiskies released and was aged in the rather uncommon cask type: ex-chardonnay. The barrel influence is significant and part of what makes this a very different whisky to most coming out of the state. Like all Hillwood releases, it is bottled at cask strength, in this case 61.4%, and was one of only 37 bottles.

Let’s begin with the colour. That colour. Wow. Dark whiskies are actually the norm for Hillwood. Paul believes it is to do with the mineral content in the local water, which I couldn’t even begin to verify, but whatever it is, the whisky comes out of a cask which once housed a distinctly white wine looking like a jar of molasses.

On the nose there is an initial whiff of apricot jam which quickly transforms into white chocolate, butterscotch and tiramisu. The palate is intense and grapey with sweet gooey notes of vanilla-latte and Werther’s Originals: caramel topping on ice cream. There’s also a hint of fruitcake, which is curious considering there’s not a hint of fortified wine used in this whisky’s creation. The finish is long. Oh-so long! The sweetness dries off rapidly leaving a lingering oaky spice.

The wood-influence is noticeably present, in no small part thanks to the 20-litre cask the whisky was aged in, but as much as this threatens to overwhelm the delicate chardonnay notes, it never does, leaving a finely balanced flavour bomb. It is an impressive whisky which gets better with every sip.

For many folk there must be a temptation to pass off the Hillwood Chardonnay Cask as just another unpredictable single cask release, yet I can thoroughly recommend seeking this one out, or at least something similar from Hillwood. There is a mini chardonnay cask movement occurring at the moment and it is fascinating to taste the results. I would even go so far as to argue that this is the best of the bunch.

★★★★

The 25 days of Aussie whisky – Day 22: Dobson’s Distillery Empire 8 60%

Posted by: Ted

On the twenty-second day of Christmas my true love gave to me… a glass of Dobson’s Distillery Empire 8 whiskey. More Victorian (as in the period, not the place) style funkiness from the New South Wales highlands ahoy! Dobson’s returns to the advent calendar, this time with a cask-strength creation. Stephen Dobson is not one to do things by halves or even multi-dimensional quarters, so the Empire 8 starts its life in stainless-steel vats with oak staves for four months before being transferred to a Shiraz cask for two years… then gets turfed into a Madeira casks for two years… aaannnddd then finally spending a couple of years in a Chardonnay cask! Phew!

The Empire 8 is triple-distilled in the Irish style (hence the whisk’e’y), which means that it is pretty smooth in spite of the cask-strengthing. The nose is soft and full of vanilla, caramel fudge and butter, while in comparison the mouth is narrow and sharp, with a definite note of vanilla topping and a hot, vapoury finish. It’s a really hard one to pick apart in terms of the multiple casking, which I think is modified by the effect of the triple-distillation and the strength. Another curious drop from the Dobson’s stable.

#whitepossumspirits

Glen Moray 10 Year Old Chardonnay Cask

Posted by: Nick

Finished in ex-Château Rayas casks: sounds impressive. Six years in French Oak Bordeaux wine barrels: sounds fancy. Maturation spent in Margaret River Shiraz casks: ooh I’d like to try me some of that! Ten years in Chardonnay barrels: wow, that sounds… wait did he just say Chardonnay?

When you consider all the premium ex-wine casks left behind by wineries across the world, maturing whisky in humble Chardonnay barrels seems like an incongruous thought. But that’s exactly what Glen Moray have done, producing a dram with flavours which live up to the curious nature of its creation.

The Glen Moray 10 Year Old Chardonnay Cask (or as we Australians at Whisky Waffle chose to label it: ‘Cardy Cask’) spends its entire 10 years of maturation in white wine barrels. And the flavours imparted certainly sets it aside from other Glen Moray expressions.

The first and perhaps biggest clue is on the nose. It is creamy and sweet – more fudge than caramel – and contains a hint of vanilla, giving it the impression of creaming soda. There is also a strong hit of acidity, reminiscent of not so much pineapple, but pineapple cream desserts.

With many drams, it is easy to predict the whisky’s taste after smelling it, but this is not the case with the Chardonnay Cask. The palate is vastly different to the nose; it is darker, with nutty elements immediately present: hazelnuts, pecans, even marzipan. More can be detected when the spirit is swirled in the mouth including notes of honey and a certain degree of woodiness.

The finish packs a surprising punch: sour citrus notes linger well after the liquid is gone, leaving a tangy, spiciness to contemplate.

Glen Moray has long held a reputation for providing reasonable whisky at a more than reasonable price. The Chardonnay Cask is no exception, and while it is easy to drink, it comes with the added bonus of containing many intriguing flavours to muse over. And all of this from a humble ‘Cardy Cask’!

★★★

The 2014 Waffle Awards

Posted by: Nick and Ted

As the year draws to a close, it becomes a time for reflection and philosophising. It also becomes a time to drink lots of whisky in celebration of the fantastic drops consumed over the past 365 days! We here at Whisky Waffle have been doing just that – and have singled out some of the highlights. So ladies and gentlemen, don your black tie and formal gowns, don’t die wondering with the complimentary champagne, and present your golden invitation at the door; you are formally welcomed along to: the first ever Waffle Awards Ceremony!

The Isle of the Drammed Award for the best Tasmanian Whisky

There can’t be too many whisky awards that have an entire category for whiskies from only Tasmania – but as it is one of the key focuses of our blog we thought we could justify it (plus we’re just outrageously proud of the whisky we produce down here). So it gives me great pleasure to announce that the inaugural winner of the Isle of the Drammed Award goes to:

Hellyers Road Port Cask Matured

This bottle is a truly deserving winner. Its contents possess the unique buttery Hellyers Road flavours, but mix them with sweet, bold fruit and toffee notes. It’s a stellar dram. We’re also hoping that after this award, its value goes up immensely, as there are very few bottles left, and both us Wafflers own one.

The Tartan Slipper for the best Scottish Whisky

Scotland is indeed the spiritual home of the water of life. So our awards night naturally must contain a category for the best dram made in the motherland of whisky. Plus, we wanted to ensure there was a category that Yamazaki could not usurp from the Scottish. So without further ado, the Tartan Slipper goes to:

The Balvenie DoubleWood 17 Year Old

The first Balvenie we ever tried was the Balvenie DoubleWood 12 Year Old – and we loved it. It was our favourite expression from the distillery for a long time – until we tried this one. It still contains the unique fruit and vanilla flavours found in the 12, but the smoothness and complexity has been dialled up to ten. No: seventeen! This is a tricky drop to get your hands on, but if you find it, boy is it worth it.

The Pocket Pleaser Award The perfect pick for the parched penny pincher

We’re not going to lie to you – buying bottles of whisky can be an expensive business. It took full time jobs for us to realise the step up in quality from a Ballantines to a Balvenie. But that doesn’t mean that we don’t appreciate a bargain when we see one. So without further ado, may I present the Pocket Pleaser Award to:

The Glenlivet 12 Year Old

This whisky has everything you want from a single malt. Character, complexity, sweetness and flavour galore. And better still, it will not break the bank. If you find a bottle for under $50 in an Australian bottle shop – don’t think – just buy it!

The Weirdsky Award for the most WTF Whisky

Let me clarify right now that this award is by no means a bad thing. We’re a fan of whiskies of all shapes and sizes – and when a whisky completely bamboozles us, we cannot help but go back for more. So with that in mind, the The Weirdsky Award for the most WTF Whisky goes to:

The Glen Moray Chardonnay Cask 10 Year Old

Yes, you read correctly. This whisky has not been matured in Château Cissac barrels, or Château d’Yquem casks. Nor has it spent six months in Tamar Valley Pinot Noir barrels. No, Glen Moray has chosen to age this whisky purely in plain and simple chardonnay casks. And it’s not bad! It has an intriguing nose and some really curious flavours, but slides down nicely all the same. It really is a perfect sunny day dram, and one that may be consumed in some quantity this summer.

The Bill Lark Award for outstanding service to Tasmanian Whisky

If there is one man alone with whom you can credit kick-starting the Australian whisky industry, then it could only be Bill Lark. Labelled the Godfather of Tasmanian whisky, his vision is the reason that we are here today (in the case of some of us: literally!). This award goes out to recognise an individual who has made an exceptional contribution to the Tasmanian Whisky industry. So now, it gives me great pleasure to announce the inaugural winner of the Bill Lark Award is:

Bill Lark

Well, who else could it be? For all the reasons previously mentioned, this man thoroughly deserves to be this award’s first winner. Everyone raise a Glencairn and toast to this man’s incredible achievements!

The Golden Dram for the best dram whisky in the world!

The final award of the night is the big one! Just a quick disclaimer: for this category we’re using ‘golden’ in its traditional sense, meaning ‘of great value’; none of this ‘Macallan Gold’ entry level nonsense. And it goes to, quite simply, the best whisky we’ve tasted this year. There are no other requirements, such as country, age – or even single malt. It is simply our favourite whisky of 2014. Drum roll please. The winner of the 2014 Whisky Waffle Golden Dram is:

Octomore 06.2

How can a couple of peat lovers go past the most heavily peated whisky in the world (at the time). But this whisky is more than a gimmick. Jim McEwan at Bruichladdie has created a whisky that is complex and intriguing and flavoursome – and has the longest lasting finish of any that we have ever tasted. The 06.2 version is a tricky one to find – anywhere – but it has the edge over its 06.1 brother. This is the whisky to get – if you can find it. Maybe it will be the whisky of 2014 and no more. But out of all the drams in the world – 2014 has got a special one.

What do you think of our awards? What would be your own picks for the same categories? Leave us a comment and let us know!