Craft Spirits hits the bullseye with a Linkwood BBR
As I am now well underway in my second year of full blown blogging about whisky, I can make some observations of the modern-day whisky industry. One of these is that producers and bottlers alike love their PX-casks. That is of course very understandable. PX is perhaps the one remaining truly popular sherry variation. In whisky maturation it is quick to add colour to the liquid, and a sweet flavour to the taste sensation. It will more than most casks mask flaws. When done right, it is excellent, when done for other reasons, you might end up with something mediocre. In the search for really good sherried whisky, I notice that I started avoiding PX casks. It is just too invasive and leaves little room for the whisky itself, especially single malt whisky where I want to enjoy the core product. Period.
During the Art of Drinks event in Amsterdam a few weeks ago, Dutch importer Craft Spirits proudly poured glasses of their newest single cask, specially bottled for them by Berry Bros & Rudd. You will understand that BBR is indeed imported to The Netherlands by Craft Spirits. The sales pitch was incredible: all the details of this whisky that you can read below, and a very, very competitive price in today’s market. After quickly sipping from it myself, there was no doubt, and I ordered a bottle as soon as it hit the digital shelves. But what about my intro? Yes, this particular Linkwood received a finish on a Pedro Ximénez cask. How it turned out, you ask? Read below.
Linkwood 2008, 17 years old, bottled at 53,4 % abv by Berry Bros & Rudd
First things first: Cask #303302 contained a Linkwood that first matured on a hogshead and was then finish on a PX cask. Only 262 bottles were released exclusively for Craft Spirits (and subsequently the Dutch market).
Upon Sipping: To answer the question about if this is an intrusive PX cask or not straight away: the first whiff from this glass of Linkwood is actually a perfect match with the characteristics we know from this distillery. So, copper coins that you held in your hand for to long, and then the smell of your palm. Then comes the fruit, as one would expect, but the cask influences are in harmony with the liquid, and that is a good sign. The arrival on the palate displays the fruit first. Lots of cherries and strawberries but also the hints of a good, sturdy cup of Earl Grey. The finish keeps that up, with those copper coins making a return. It is extremely quaffable without water, but we are thirsty for what more this Linkwood can offer. Yes, the nose does get richer, with apricot and orange marmalade, showing the initial hogshead maturation left a strong print on this Scotch too. The sweetness of the PX has lifted off even more now, making for a creamy mouthfeel, where the liquid sticks to the palate like syrup. The finish did become a tad rough with the water, but leaves a lingering warmth that makes you want to skip November and go straight to Christmas times. I would not mind finding another bottle of this single cask under my tree, I tell you!
Word to the Wise: Linkwood has the right texture to stand up to any strongminded cask type, but with sherry it can also turn into a monster. Not in this case. It has a good base, and the PX finish cannot have been a long one, which resulted in a bottling that is precisely on the cusp of the 90 points scale. Congratulations to Craft Spirits, this is what I call a bullseye bottling.
Score: 89 points.