38.38 Chestnut forest confections

Description

We’re fast approaching the last time we’ll likely see Distillery 38 bottled — perhaps forever. But we’re not there, yet, so let’s welcome Cask 38 from Distillery 38, a rich and rare treat of forest sweets from this demolished distillery. A distillery that for years had the sole purpose of replicating the single malt profile from its sister site across the road, but never could match it, and to the minds and palates of many people, actually beat it. This spirit, and with age, was always marvellously bubble-gummy, delicate, tropical, and just a delight. 25 years of slumbering maturation from mid-1996 has finally landed in Australia, and is being offered up in our special September Outturn.

The nose, elusive at first, took us through a chestnut wood to a confectioner, where we saw marzipan petits fours, jammy dodgers and chocolate honeycomb bars displayed on wooden shelves. The palate (beautifully matured) offered juicy kiwi and lemon, vanilla ice cream, and raspberry, coconut and dark chocolate bars, plus lingering tingles of ginger and nutmeg. With water (careful!) – lemon tart, butterscotch, popcorn, and strawberries and cream on the nose; liquorice allsorts, green apple and macadamias on the palate. At 21 years of age, we combined selected casks from this distillery, and then returned the single malt into a variety of different casks to develop further. This is one of those casks.