Dingle is a genuine Irish whiskey distillery, so far so good. We tried their Dingle Single Malt release a few years ago, but that didn’t really convince us to closely follow their production. Today I’m having the opportunity to try two single casks exclusive to Kirsch Import in Germany.
Dingle 2015 – Bourbon single cask (59,2%, OB for Kirsch Import 2024)
Nose: young spirit with a clear Irish footprint. That means nice fruits like pears, apples and pineapples, as well as some vanilla and honey. Lemon / lime, with a grassy hint and some mineral notes in the background. A hint of yeast and chiffon leather too, mixed with a slightly off-putting waxy and cheesy notes and a dusty hint of new wood, eventually. Difficult.
Mouth: weird. This waxy / woody element got a lot stronger, taking over most of the whiskey. Hard to describe, but something chemical. I’m also getting a fragrant candy note that is linked to very new oak. Yeasty dough, almost rye spice, earthy notes and a light bitterness. Funky stuff.
Finish: quite long, spicy and yeasty. Some fresh tannins and bitter herbs too.
I have a feeling that the cask was over-active and took over the distillate. The nose was alright but it’s not very pleasant to drink in my opinion. Off-road whiskey, in my opinion. False start.
Dingle 2015 – Oloroso single cask (59,4%, OB for Kirsch Import 2024)
Mouth: argh, still too woody, I’m afraid. This is not a quality Oloroso cask. You even get the astringency and industrial edge of a rum at times (glue). Vanilla comes late, along with hints of toffee. Just too much (wood) astringency.
Finish: too long. Ginger, sour fruits and hints of toffee.
I’m not sure what to say. On the nose both are reasonably attractive but on the palate they are bothering me in more than one way. If you then take the price into the equation (around € 155), things get even worse. Score: 72/100