Whisky: Ballechin 11 Year STFC Cask 378

Country/Region: Scotland/Highland

ABV: 53.4%

Cask: Bordeaux Wine

Age: 11 Years (Distilled 6 Dec. 2005, Bottled 13 Sept. 2017)

Nose: The vapors! Earth, fruit, and fire battled in the air before me. Initially, I thought of caramel apples, and fig tarts set aflame with bittersweet treacle and burned cherries jubilee until a rich earthiness slid in with notes of modeling clay, loam, and oil paints. Meatier notes arrived with ham skin, bacon, and peppermint hot chocolate mix.

Palate: Medium-bodied and viscous with fruit, earth, and chocolate. Supple and juicy as notes of strawberries, mint, and balsamic vinegar hit the palate. A lovely richness developed on the mid-palate as chocolate and berries joined hints of licorice, baked adobe bricks, and modeling clay. Epson salts and pool chemicals added complexity while the chocolate malt and coffee lingered to the end.

Finish:  Lingering chocolate and a dry earthiness.

Score: 7

Mental Image: Cooking by Flambé 101

Notes: Mellow and restrained— at least for a Ballechin— the wine cask paired nicely with the heavily peated malt to accentuate notes of earth and chocolate. Based on previous experience, I expected something that would smack me in the face and run roughshod over my taste buds; an aggressive bear hug of peat and meat. While the nose was a bit hot a first and loaded with earth, meat and fruit, the palate was balanced and easy to drink. I know “smooth” as a descriptor gets some eye rolls, but this was remarkably smooth with no off notes or spirited spikes to distract from a coherent profile of chocolate and fruit.

The Bordeaux cask played center stage and pushed the Ballechin toward earth and chocolate with just hints of char and caramelization. A tad less complex than a similar heavily peated red wine matured Bunnahabhain I adored last year, but brimming with similar chocolatey wine cask notes. I might have scored this up a peg simply because it reminded me of that divine dram.

Overall, a slightly tamer affair than I am used to with Ballechin, but still delicious.

Image Credit: Whiskybase