New South Wales

Whisky #565: Just Derek…Single Cask Independent Bottling from Craft Works Distillery

Leave a Comment
FacebooktwitterredditpinterestlinkedinmailFacebooktwitterredditpinterestlinkedinmailby feather

Just Derek…Single Cask Independent Bottling from Craft Works Distillery (bottle 047 of 155). ABV: 65.8%. New South Wales, Australia. Tasted at Whisky a Day HQ, $220 (500mL bottle).

Happy Australia Day! It’s only appropriate that we continue our Whisky a Day Bottle Kill Week by chucking another shrimp on the barbie (hint: we never say that) and polishing off another bottle of booze (hint: Aussies have definitely been known to say that).

Tonight, we polish off a special whisky. It’s called Just Derek…and it’s the very first release from Craft Works Distillery. Hand produced by Craig “Crafty” Field, Craft Works is a small artisan whisky distillery based up in the Blue Mountains a few hours west of Sydney. From a single cask, we’re finishing off one of only 155 bottles that were made. 

Colour: Deep luscious caramel.

Nose: Sweets in a workshop. Fresh liquorice, brown sugar and melted butter that’s just started to separate in the saucepan. Along with old leather and the smell of walking through a mechanic’s workshop where the smells of old engines abound. 

Palate: It’s a contemplative dram, there’s so much going on here flavour-wise.  Chinese BBQ pork, caramelised pork hock, crème brûlée, salted caramel, just a hint of sweet smoke. Very “food driven”…or maybe I’m just hungry? Either way, it’s delicious juice.

A long warm tingle buzzing the front of the tongue, reminding you that as a whisky with an ABV of 65.8% (in that most Aussie of phrases)…it’s not here to f*^# spiders.

Finish: A soft, sweet crème caramel flavour coats the mouth, and a slight saltiness as you lick your lips.

Comments: This is definitely a drop that benefits from time in the glass, as well as some time after first opening the bottle. It was a little sharp when I first cracked open the bottle last year, but it has softened slightly and was absolutely fantastic to drink right now.

As for the unusual name “Just Derek…”? You can read more about Crafty’s touching backstory and tribute to his late mate Derek here. 

A small craft producer in all senses, this is one to look out for. If Just Derek is the starting point, then with Crafty’s infectious passion and humble desire to keep striving to be better and better every step of the way, Craft Works Distillery has a bright future indeed.

Whisky #411: Black Gate Distillery 5 20s Cask Strength Single Malt

Leave a Comment

FacebooktwitterredditpinterestlinkedinmailFacebooktwitterredditpinterestlinkedinmailby featherimg_6791-3.jpgBlack Gate Distillery 5 20s Cask Strength Single Malt. New South Wales, Australia. ABV: 67.00%. Tasted at home, $195 (500mL bottle).

It’s a cold, windy and rainy afternoon here in Sydney today. Today’s sailing race has been abandoned due to dangerous conditions. So…perfect weather for staying indoors with a cask strength whisky! And what a cracker this is…

Colour: Deep treacle.

Nose: A satisfying nose prickle. Very complex, lots of rich sweetness; raisins, treacle, and (somewhat strangely) blackcurrant Soothers. A campfire burns in the distance.

Palate: A rich and full mouthfeel. Imagine a smoked golden syrup, or smokey salted caramel. Caramelised balsamic onions that have been baked with a Sunday roast – a perfect balance of rich savoury and sweet notes.

Finish: Ridiculously long. The syrupy flavours subside leaving a rich, smokey and salty tang in the fade.

Comments: Distilled in September 2013 and bottled in December 2015, this is a very young whisky – but fortunately with Australia’s climate variations whisky tends to mature a lot more quickly than whiskies from other parts of the world where the variation in temperatures are less pronounced. The scientist in me would love to take the same new make spirit, place it in (as near as possible) identical barrels, and then send them to four corners of the earth and see how the whisky matures, both in terms of flavour variations as well as maturation times.

But back to the Black Gate. The “5 20s” in the name refers to the five twenty litre casks that were vatted together to produce the 159 bottles of this release. A limited release, and one that they’ve put out to market as soon as it is legally becomes whisky. However, with the small cask sizes turbo-charging the maturation by increasing the wood-to-whisky ratio, it tastes a lot older.

Amazing complexity and flavour profile, this is a whisky that is perfectly suited for a cold rainy afternoon.

Whisky #391: Dobson’s Belle Epoque Cask Strength Single Malt

1 Comment

FacebooktwitterredditpinterestlinkedinmailFacebooktwitterredditpinterestlinkedinmailby featherimg_6379.jpegDobson’s Belle Epoque Cask Strength Single Malt. New England Highlands, New South Wales, Australia. ABV: 60.0%. Tasted at Saint John Craft Beer Bar (Launceston, Australia), $15.

Happy ‘Straya Day! Being our national day and celebration of all things Australian, it’s only appropriate that we take a look at an Aussie whisky. I came across this bottle of Dobson’s Belle Epoque at a craft beer bar in Launceston, Tasmania.

Colour: Burnt copper.

Nose: Lightly peated with a slight nose prickle. Almost some meaty peat aromas; like sticking your nose over a pot of fresh bolognese sauce cooking on the stovetop, but with a hint of sweetness as you pull your nose away.

Palate: Opens up on the mid & back palate then the heat slides down as your swallow. My mate Joel gets some burnt toffee notes; I get a spicy, peppery sweetness with some campfire smoke.

Finish: An extremely dry finish. Warmth tingles on the front of the tongue and the roof of your mouth.

Comments: I hadn’t previously heard of Dobson’s, which is understandable as it is a tiny operation located in the village of Kentucky NSW, about 5.5 hours drive north of Sydney and situated at Eastview Estate where they also have a winery, brewery, restaurant and speakeasy bar. And a spectacularly irreverant back story on their website (check it out here at http://www.eastviewestate.com/whiskey.html).

For such a small operation, this is a cracking whisky. Complex, with great depth of different flavours and mouthfeel, overall it’s great drinking. I’d be keen to track down some more of this one.

Handmade in "absurdly small quantities"

Handmade in “absurdly small quantities”