Provenance: Cork (Ireland)
Typology: Irish Single Malt Whiskey
Gradation: 43%ABV
Ageing casks: Ex-Bourbon First Fill, finished in ex-Sherry
Chillfiltered: No
Additional coloring: No
Owner: West Cork Distillers
Average price: € 31.00
Official website: www.westcorkdistillers.com
Vote: 71/100
In 2003, three childhood friends decided to found a distillery west of Cork, in the south of Ireland, at a time that was certainly not easy for Irish whiskey.
But John O’Connell, Ger McCarthy and Denis McCarthy are well aware of distillation and have certainly not lost heart in the difficulties, moving their headquarters to Skibbereen just a year later, with a brand new distillery inaugurated just in 2020 and declared as the largest in the country.
Alongside vodka and gin (almost essential for a whole new distillery), the three obviously produce whiskey, made entirely on site with the classic triple distillation and completely natural, with a wide choice of bottles that differ in the barrels used in the final maturation, plus some declared ageing no longer part of their portfolio.
I start with the first of five bottlings that, beginning from ex-Bourbon barrels, differ for the finishing, in this case in ex-Sherry barrels from the Bodega Barón in Cádiz, Spain.
Tasting notes
Light gold with amber reflections in the glass.
Almond paste and pencil chips immediately take the nose, a mix not really common in a rather dry and tense aromatic profile, with floral touches on dried fruits (nuts, peanuts), cereal biscuit, honey drop. Humidor wood in the background. Interesting.
Pinch of pepper at the entrance on a fairly light consistency that takes a more classically sherried route with nutmeg, red fruits, pecans, while maintaining a strong persistence of cedar wood that tends to cover the flavors.
Fairly short and dry finish, woody, with spicy impressions and dried fruits.
Too bad, because on the nose it was really intriguing. A different experience than usual that is lost on the palate, where the woods take over a whisky too light to support them.
Reviews of West Cork whiskey in the blog
Other perspectives:
The Whiskey Jug