Jura Tastival was created for the Jura Whisky Festival 2014. They followed an interesting recipe. After an initial maturation in ex-bourbon American oak barrels, no less than six varieties of French oak were used to finish it (oak produced in the regions of Jupilles, Bertanges, Limousin, Tronçais, Allier and Vosges). Kind of a terroir study in French oak.
It’s a limited edition of 3000 bottles. I suppose the majority will have been sold at the festival, but some have started to arrive in stores across Europe.
Isle of Jura Tastival (44%, OB 2014, French oak finish, 3000 btl.)
Isle of Jura Tastival (44%, OB 2014, French oak finish, 3000 btl.)Nose: I really like this. There’s lots of red apple and baked banana, as well as almond paste / marzipan and toffee sweetness. Ginger and oak. Banoffee pie. A subtle smokiness is found in lacquered bacon, with hints of salty roast beef. Subtle herbal notes. Nice balance of sweet and savoury notes.
Mouth: very sweet again. Stewed fruits. Some nuts and caramel notes. Oranges. Evolves to more savoury notes like liquorice and ginger. After that, a wave of nice roasted notes (coffee, biscuits) and mocha butter cream comes out.
Finish: long, sweet and herbal, with some wood influence.
When I read the recipe, I was a little skeptical. The end result is original and uncommon to say the least, but I like it very much. I hope something like this will be part of the core range some day. Around € 100.
Score: 88/100