Origin: Denmark
Type: Danish Single Malt Whisky
Strength: 47%ABV
Ageing casks: Virgin, ex-Bourbon. ex-Rum. ex-Madeira
Chillfiltered: No
Added colouring: No
Owner: Stauning Whisky
Average price: € 110.00
Official website: stauningwhisky.com
Vote: 82/100
Having tried their rye some time ago, we return to the Danish distillery and their production carried out entirely on site, including the malting in this case of barley, carried out in the open.
A smoky version, as the name suggests, obtained by burning both heather and local peat, the latter supplied by the Klosterlund Museum which draws from nearby Lake Bølling, with the distillate maturing four times, from both virgin and first-fill casks.
Tasting notes
A pleasant aroma of roasted malt emerges on the nose, with hints of juniper, reflecting the vegetal aspect of smoking. Warm and enveloping, it brings to mind a freshly baked strudel: baked apple, cinnamon, nutmeg, pine nuts, sultanas, puff pastry. The aromas are delicate but not ephemeral, predominantly sweet with that light touch of smoke and spice that doesn’t make it cloying.
On the palate it’s oily and calm, opening with a hint of pepper on the tongue followed by salted caramel, malted biscuits, nutmeg, smoked wood, baked apple, pretzel and a slight balsamic hint. The impression is that it’s rather light, with the vegetal part prevailing over the length.
The finish is quite long and saline, of spices, baked bread, malt.
A light peat, perhaps too much so, which lacks the incisiveness to be remembered but still manages to give a pleasant and relaxing drink, appreciated by those who may be looking for a gentler peat. It shows personality, but without carrying it through to the end.