A couple of months ago I did a session with five European whiskies. Here’s a follow-up tour of distilleries outside of Scotland. We head over to Iceland (Flóki), Switzerland (Säntis), Germany (Elsburn), England (Cotswolds) and Finland (Teerenpeli).
Most of the whiskies we’ll try were exclusive to Germany via Kirsch Import.
Flóki Distillers Cut 5 yo (47%, OB 2023, Oloroso finish, 557 btl.)
Nose: rather plankish. Carpenter’s workshops, or a freshly opened Ikea pack. Also straw and hints of rye bread. Nutmeg, cardboard, light metallic notes. Green walnuts, sour fermentary hints and pine needles as well. Somehow I find this rather Nordic, but I probably wouldn’t have guessed it was whisky.
Mouth: still weird. Very herbal, lots of gentian notes, bitter herbal tea, peppermint and pine wood. The alcohol seems much sharper than the ABV suggests. Makes me think of Galician orujo rather than whisky. More walnuts, hints of glue and fresh oak shavings.
Finish: rather long, mainly due to very pungent spices and tannins, resinous notes and hints of salmiak.
A wicked mix of rye whisky, herbal liqueurs and wood juice. The Oloroso is hardly noticeable and overall I find this hard to enjoy. They also have a Sheep Dung Smoked version. I’m not saying I’m interested.
Säntis Snow White No. 11 6 yo (48%, OB 2023, beer cask + poire finish, 50 cl, 2000 btl.)
Mouth: even more pear. Of course pear flavours are not uncommon in (young) whisky from classic ex-bourbon casks, but this is really pear schnapps / pears in syrup / pear tarlets. Later also vanilla, subtle caramel and white pepper.
Finish: medium, on pear, ginger and malt.
Very limited complexity and not totally whisky-ish, but no faults either. Pear is an easy flavour that nobody will be against, I guess. However, compared to their cask for Whisky Picnic Bar it is certainly a little tame. Score: 79/100
Elsburn 8 yo 2013 ‘Italian Connection’ (55,1%, OB 2022, first fill Amarone + Marsala casks, 1292 btl.)
Mouth: stranger now, it reminds me of some very wine-driven vermouths (like Gran Bassano, or Lacuesta Reserva which is one of my personal favourites). Red wine and herbs. Then hints of fruit punch, clove-studded oranges, plums, cranberries and just plain Marsala. Moist tobacco leaves and a firm sourness as well.
Finish: medium, still sweet and sour, with oak spice and leather.
Remarkable winesky – if this continues, it will become a session of freaks! From a spirits perspective, this may be an interesting hybrid of styles, but from a whisky perspective, it doesn’t feel right. Score: 75/100
Cotswolds 5 yo 2016 (60,6%, OB for Kirsch Import 2021, first fill STR barrique #705, 285 btl.)
Mouth: more sweetness, of toffee and caramelized almonds with honey and a fruitiness of mashed banana and raspberry pastry. A bit of peppery alcohol but less than expected based on the mere ABV. Nice weight. Then rich, warm woody notes with cinnamon and clove, mixed with vanilla and oak char. Only a very light echo of wine.
Finish: medium length. Pepperiness, gentle vanilla, sweet lemon candy and light astringency.
Nice weight and no weird notes. This leaves a nice impression. Kirsch Import had an even nicer 2016 Oloroso cask in 2022, but this was pretty good as well. Score: 83/100
Teerenpeli 8 yo 2014 (61,7%, OB for Germany 2022, Pedro Ximénez cask #25112013B, 50 cl, 342 btl.)
Mouth: very dark and nutty (walnut, pecan), with plenty of espresso notes and burnt wood. Then more leathery notes and cigar leaves, flashes of bright berries, dark raisins, savoury herbs and some leafy notes. Rubbery notes too. Edradour springs to mind.
Finish: quite long, still savoury and leafy, on walnuts and coffee.
Not my kinda PX. The leafy darkness and rubbery coffee make it a little challenging. Far less impressive than the Oloroso cask from Berry Bros. in any case. No highflyers in this session, sorry. Score: 81/100