Killara Dark Mofo 2024 Single Malt (Cask #KD38)

Killara Distillery post-tour tasting, 10 August 2024, whisky #2 Nose: Mixed breakfast cereal (milled oats, barley and wheat), light ale-like malt, vanilla, dried dates, dried figs, prunes, raisins. There was a hint of treacle or molasses (some sort of ashen dark sugar) and this intensified with reduction (but don’t add too much water). Palate: The arrival started with brandy flavours and sweet raisins that were unexpected as they had not been apparent on the nose. These gave way to rum, dark chocolate, and dried fruits as it developed and the mouth-feel became a little more drying in the process. It then progressed again into softer, sweeter flavours of malt and baked vanilla custard. The texture was rich and full, slightly oily and creamy. Water expanded the creamy notes and brought out more evidence of rum cask influence. Finish: Medium. Cereal, semi-sweet, with bread pudding and mixed fruit. The rum cask and dry mouthfeel emerged again in the aftertaste. This whisky has no age statement and so is technically a NAS, however it’s widely known that it was crafted from 50 litres of whisky drawn in 2024 from one of the distillery’s oldest casks, a 200 litre ex-cognac cask that was filled in 2018, so it was 5 or 6 year old whisky at that time. It was then finished for a month in a small first-fill Australian ex-rum cask. Just 98 bottles were produced at a strength of 45% abv without any added colour or chill-filtration. There was something about this whisky that really captured me. It’s by no means the best Australian whisky I’ve ever tasted, but it has a compelling profile that drew me back for repeated nosing and tasting. The combination of ex-cognac and ex-rum cask is particularly successful here – it just “clicks” for some reason. However it is relatively low strength at 45% so if adding water be restrained as it is easy to drown. When I discovered that the distillery had a single bottle left in stock (no. 69 of 98) I grabbed it. “Very Good” : 85/100 (4 stars)