Whisky can be matured in Spanish sherry casks but you’d have to bring the casks over to Scotland to name the result ‘Scotch whisky’. For Nomad, they shipped the whisky to the cellars of the famous bodega Gonzalez Byass and finished it in the Andalusian climate. Hence the name outland whisky.
At its base is a blended whisky composed from 26 malts and 6 grain distilleries (5 to 8 years old) by Whyte & Mackay master blender Richard Paterson. The blend is then finished for about one year in old Pedro Ximénez casks.
Although they say this is a world first, we’ve seen similar double matured whiskies before. Sheep Dip Amoroso for instance, also made by Paterson, or some of Amrut’s experiments.
Nomad ‘Outland Whisky’
(41,3%, González Byass 2015)
Nomad ‘Outland Whisky’Nose: very thick, entirely on raisins, pears, chocolate and sticky toffee pudding. Caramel all over. Vanilla and mocha notes. Walnut liqueur. Almond paste. A bit bloated, like PX itself sometimes, with something of (overripe) mango in the background. It feels like a mixture of Spanish brandy and whisky.
Mouth: creamy, with the same syrupy raisin character. Fig syrup, mocha, cinnamon pastry and caramel. Rather unrelenting, you have to like things sweet and syrupy.
Finish: medium long, still caramelly but with a growing warm spiciness now.
Even though I’m not a fan of overly sweet whisky, this is still interesting because it covers up all the usual pitfalls of (youngish) Scotch blends. Complexity is low but this could work for specific audiences. Around € 25 in Spain. Closer to € 45 in other countries.
Score: 79/100