Cotswolds Sherry Cask

Double dipping tonight. Two up from the relative newcomers ‘Cotswolds’. Opening the evening proceedings is a cask strength sherry cask expression. Local SW England barley and matured in a combination of American and Spanish oak hogsheads and butts, seasoned with Oloroso and Pedro Ximénez sherry. Bottled at a respectable 57.4% ABV. N: Warm and toasty this oozes stewed fruit and gentle spices. Apple, ginger, clove, plums, blackcurrant, dates. This is Christmas cake, no argument about it. But, despite what sounds like a sherry bomb, this isn’t. The fruits and spice come through with deftness and lightness that leave room for toasty malt and a slightly burnt brown sugar, is there a slightly dry bitter coffee note also? I think so, yes. P: Rich, plump, nicely oily, and plenty of ABV prickle. Black pepper spiciness rules the roost, but get past that and there is nutty dark chocolate, heavy blackberry jam, and brown sugar crunch. F: Medium-long. Black pepper builds from the palate into a lingering pepper-zing, but there are also juicy dark berries and figgy jam. The high ABV slightly masks the youth of this malt. Things are a little to aggressive and the promise of the underlying malt given by the nose doesn’t quite make it through. Water is the secret then. A fairly hefty dash and there is gentleness to be found in the palate. Vanilla, maybe a honied note and definitely some fresh orange spritz come through from the loss of the overwhelming black pepper. Whilst the ABV drops away the youth is revealed, the depth of character isn’t there and the texture falls to a slightly granular ‘fractured’ expression. Tempered with time and slightly calmed I think this has potential to be a lovely and somewhat restrained sherry cask, but it isn’t quite there yet. Distiller whisky taste #285 [Pictured here with a lovely chunk of the Cotswolds. The Cotswolds area is defined by Jurassic limestone bedrock that is quarried for the golden-coloured Cotswold stone with the highest point at Cleeve Hill a meagre 330 m high. Most of the Cotswolds hills are made of Oolitic limestone, a limestone made of small rounded calcite grains called ooids. These formed in shallow, warm waters like those found today around parts of the Caribbean Sea, where calcium carbonate is deposited from sea water due to evaporation. The round grains grow in size as they are gently rolled to and fro by waves, in water only a few metres deep]. Cotswolds running scores: Single malt: 4/5 Sherry cask strength: 3/5

Rating: 11/23 I received this sample blind, so I have no idea what to expect. I'm pretty confident it's whisk(e)y, but honestly I can't even be certain of that. E: A nice rich caramel color. A light amber. Nothing super dark, but not light like one of those scotches aged in somewhat tired barrels. Of course, this could just be E150a N: Funky. It's fruity but also meaty. Not exactly sulphuric, but weird. Oh, I am getting a bit of sulphur now. Smoke and some sort of vegetal scent that seems like a grain mash (perhaps an Irish style whiskey?) but honestly could be some sort of armagnac. A floral hint peeks out a times. And then sort of dry barrel tannins. This is very weird, out of balance, and not enjoyable. I do like the fruit and bit of barrel tannins, but the longer I leave this here, the more the sulphur takes over. Whatever this is, it's clearly fairly young. P: It's fairly hot and intense. Whatever the ABV on this is, it has to be fairly high - I'd guess over 55%. Surprisingly, the palate has a lot less sulphur and a lot more of the floral and fruit flavors. There's a bit of muddled vegetation that is rotting slightly in the background. I don't like that character and I feel like it clashes, but it's honestly not too bad. There's a nice malty sweetness and richness to this, but there's also some grain sharp burn and harshness. I'm definitely thinking single pot still here, but it could be a blend (or a weird malt like that one I tried from Breukelen).There's some lemon coming from the grain and then some light tangerine from the malt. Possibly a bit of light caramel, but that sweetness is mostly maltiness. I'm definitely getting some sherry influence here (though I could be convinced it is an odd red wine). There's a nice, slightly oily mouthfeel as well. Maybe a bit of mustard powder too? Oh, and a little bit of those sweet ribbon candies - the regular and the cinnamon ones (75% the regular though). This a huge improvement over the nose. It's still not great, but it's pretty drinkable. F: Lingering harshness with burning, lemon, and malt. A bit of mustard powder and light char. Odd. Not awful, but definitely too hot. - Conclusion - This reminds me a bit of The Sexton (9/23). There's more malt, funk, heat, and fullness here. I think that the two aren't super far apart, but this is clearly better. Breuckelen's 7 year old bourbon cask finished american single malt (12/23) has a lot of the bite that this has, but less of the sweet maltiness and funk. This is sweeter and more approachable - and I'm actually getting more vanilla and barrel from it now. I want to give this a higher rating for being more interesting and complex, but it's definitely flawed in multiple, significant ways. I'd take the Breuckelen over this. Overall, this is a 10 or 11 and I'm leaning toward an 11. This just seems closer to the Breuckelen than to The Sexton. Thank you @PBMichiganWolverine for the sample!

Very nice

Continuing my Cotswolds series, I have a sample of their Sherry cask that was bottled at 57.4% ABV. The nose is starts with a mix of musty grapes, dehydrated mangos, light sulfur and wet hay then cocoa powder dusted prunes and freshly lit pipe tobacco followed by golden raisins, sour lemon candy and dehydrated apricots that transitions to light baking spices and mildly bitter black tea with medium ethanol burn. The taste is a thin to medium mouthfeel starting with creamy tropical fruits before quickly veering towards a moderate bitter and sour spice that slowly fades to a mix of musty grapes, canned pineapple and wet cardboard then cocoa powder dusted prunes, espresso grounds and freshly lit pipe tobacco followed by golden raisins, honey crisp apples and gooseberries that transitions to light baking spices and mildly bitter black tea with medium ethanol burn. The finish is short with light tropical fruits, cocoa powder dusted prunes, black pepper spice and moderately bitter black tea. Well damn, this one didn’t turn out too well for my palate. The nose is mildly offensive with the sherry dominating with sour musty fruits that allows for some of those tropical Cotswolds fruits to occasionally shine through before quickly fading to bitter oak which carries over to the palate with a moderate bitter spice before thankfully finishing short with a light fruitiness that is quickly overtaken by sour fruits and bitter spices. This is like that weird Aunt or Uncle that seems out of place in the family, who decides to tell mildly offensive jokes all while burping and farting at the dinner table stating “Better out than in!” after each burp or fart and talks about how deodorant is unnatural. It’s a sour and sulphuric dinner that thankfully ends quicker than expected and you’re grateful that Aunt or Uncle lives far away and only tends to grace the family with their presence once a year. It’s an oddball in the amazing Cotswolds lineup and one I’ll be avoiding in the future.

Very nice Sherry bomb with notes of figs, apples, Blackcurrants, rum soaked raisins, honey, oranges, quince, toffee, chocolate truffles, and raspberries.