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Distiller: Heaven Hill
Type: Straight Bourbon Whiskey
Type: Straight Bourbon Whiskey
Bottler: Cadenhead
Range: World Whiskies
Region: Louisville, Kentucky meets Campbeltown, Scotland
Maturation: New American oak barrel
Region: Louisville, Kentucky meets Campbeltown, Scotland
Maturation: New American oak barrel
Outturn: 150 bottles
Alcohol by Volume: 57.7%
(Thank you to LV33 for the sample!!)
NOTES
No generic barrel char to be found in the nose. Kiwis, nectarines and dark chocolate sit in its place. Then some burlap, toffee, blossoms, a drizzle of Pedro Ximénez and just a little bit of vanilla bean. Much less wood and burn than I'd expected from the palate. One can find sea salt, stone fruits, dark chocolate and sesame oil up front. Some tangy pepper sauce in the back. It gets brinier and savorier with time. There are hints of the nose's fruits in the finish, along with cloves, cayenne pepper, umami and a minor tannic nip.
WORDS WORDS WORDS
Should I just be drinking American whiskey aged in Scotland instead of American whiskey aged in America? Yes? Great. That'll be a cheap hobby.
The nose wins the day as usual, but still this bourbon drinks very well at this strength. I had a much different experience with the whiskey than did Serge. I didn't find it very oaky, and you know what a sensitive turd I am about tannins. There was a small vanilla note, no barrel char, no caramel and no puckering finish. Instead it has a good balance of salty, savory, fruity and floral characteristics. If I ever get back to Scotland, I'll keep a lookout for Heaven Hills in the Cadenhead shops.
Glad you enjoyed it. You're not the first to point out that PX note, I poured this blind to a group and many were convinced this was a sherried malt.
ReplyDeleteIm fascinated by the idea of tasting barrels that 'immigrated' to new environments like this HH moving to Scotland. An Amrut aged in the Midwest, a Kavalan aged in Campbeltown, etc could be interesting.