Penderyn Myth / Legend / Rich Oak

Penderyn Myth and Penderyn Legend are two single malts from their Dragon range. The series was first introduced in 2015 and recently got a packaging makeover with a lighter bottle and new visuals.

Myth uses some rejuvenated casks (commonly known as STR casks – after all the house style of Penderyn was designed by Jim Swan), while Legend uses Madeira casks. In fact you could say a Madeira finish is one of the typical elements of the Penderyn profile, as they also use it for their cornerstone expression.

It seems previous versions of these whiskies were bottled at 43% ABV, then 41% and now they went down to 40%, a strange move that doesn’t exactly exude self-confidence, in my opinion…

 

Penderyn Myth (40%, OB 2023, ex-bourbon + rejuvenated casks)

Nose: bright and inviting, on poached pears, tangerines and a synthetic bubblegum note. Light and candy-like, with some fresh bourbonny touches of vanilla. Subtle solventy notes. Simple pleasure.

Mouth: fresh bourbon lends some bright fruity notes again. Juicy citrus and crisp pear, but less fruity than the nose. Hints of vanilla and almond syrup. Then increasing grassy notes with spicier hints of candied ginger and white pepper. Floral woody notes as well.

Finish: medium, grassy, with malty notes, pepper and hints of honey.

A lightweight whisky with a very simple, bright character. The fruitiness of the spirit is highlighted by the bourbon oak. That said, on the palate it loses complexity as the oak takes the upperhand. It misses the sweet spot of spirit and oak balance. Available from The Whisky Exchange and Master of Malt for instance.

 

 

Penderyn Legend (40%, OB 2023, Madeira finish)

Nose: the slightly musty side of the Madeira is easy to notice. Citrusy hints, apples, melons, still a bit of an artificial sweet shop profile. Then some mashy hints, vegetal notes and fresh herbs. Light fudge. Not as clean as the Myth.

Mouth: similar thoughts. Relatively thin, and the bright fruitiness seems to be capped by the Madeira instead of lifted. Yellow apples and yeasty notes. Also ginger, light raisins and some bitterness.

Finish: fairly short, on baking spice, grippy wood and apple.

This too has some artificial notes, similar to what I found years ago when trying their whisky. I prefer Penderyn Myth over Legend. Available from The Whisky Exchange and Master of Malt for instance. Score: 73/100

 

Then onto Penderyn Rich Oak, part of their Gold range (basically the core range). On paper this sounds like a higher strength version of myth, using the same ex-bourbon and rejuvenated casks.

 

Penderyn Rich Oak (46%, OB 2023, ex-bourbon + rejuvenated casks)

Nose: neutral start, with lots of baguettes, lemons and green apples, as well as some pear drops. Light hints of pencil shavings. A light fruitiness comes out after a while, mainly green bananas, alongside minty notes and soft pepper.

Mouth: a lot of woody notes. Pencil shavings with coconut flakes, bananas and vanilla custard. Then dark berries and hints of toffee, as well as some cinnamon and almond. The higher ABV adds depth but also leaves a spirity footprint.

Finish: medium length. The wood spice and alcohol combination is a little too strong now, with hints of coconut and solvents.

I hear there is considerable batch variation, but this one is not really convincing. Available from The Whisky Exchange and Master of Malt for instance. Score: 78/100