Virginia Distillery Co. Port Cask Finished Virginia-Highland Whisky

Bought a 50 ml for $4.99 at VA ABC. Glad I didn’t have to suffer through more of this. On the nose there is young whisky with just a hint of Port. Those notes carry through to the palate. There are faint hints of Port, but totally overshadowed by the immature ethanol burn that exceeds the 92 proof point.

From a plastic hotel glass: Nose is raspberries and honeydew. Palate is raisins, red fruits, wood spice and more raisins. Finish is medium-hot with just a touch of cigar smoke and more red fruit. If I’d had this blind, I would have said it was a 10yr Macallan, or a 5-7 year GlenDronach. The Port influence is huge, and any hint of American whisky is overpowered by the combination of Scotch and Port. Unless I can find this in a bar somewhere to sample from proper glassware, I doubt it will be a repeat. If you’re looking for a less costly Macallan clone, give this a go. I, however, am not a Macallan fan.

When most people think of Virginia and whiskey, they probably think of the Bowman family. But there are also some interesting things coming out of Virginia Distillery Co. This one happens to a port-cask aged American single malt with some Scotch blended in. Interesting concept. This happens to be from Batch No. 14. Nose: Malt, toffee, vanilla, and cereal grain. Cocoa. Sugar cookie. Apricot. Some fig, date, raisin notes from the port cask. Cranberry. Pear. Almond and cashew. Pecan. Dried Gouda cheese. Cola. Pomegranate. Oak. Palate: Apple, pear, orange citrus. Vanilla, toffee, malt. There’s a peppermint Icebreaker or maybe a Mentos note. Sugar cookie. Caramel. Pecan. Coffee. Honeydew. Blackberry, plum, raisin, date, and fig. Cranberry to boot. Finish: Cranberry, fig, date, and raisin. Pear, apricot, orange citrus. Sugar cookie, vanilla, toffee, malt. Cinnamon, clove, and nutmeg. Black pepper and oak spice. Medium-length. Fantastic. A true diamond in the rough if I’ve ever had one. It’s unique, as expected of an American-Scottish single malt hybrid. But more importantly, it’s a clean, crisp, and powerful combination of the distinct attributes of both nations’ best work. At $47, this boasts some of the best VFM you’re going to find in the whiskey category. If you’re feeling the squeeze from the tariffs and price hikes on your Scotch, this is by far the “Scotchiest” American single malt, and it’s much cheaper for us than anything comparable from across the pond. 4.5/5. A unique whiskey in so many ways. An American/Scotch malt hybrid aged in port barrels. It works, no question about it. Looks like I’ve got to track down the chard and cider casks next, and then move on to their fully in-house stuff. Excellent.

I like this. Cinnamon on the nose?

A nice bite at the end!

Rich Amber color. A ton of cereal, almost overwhelmingly so, on the nose with floral notes. Extraordinarily smooth with a really pleasant malt/cereal forward opening. Silky consistency with caramel and a subtle lingering honey sweetness. Really enjoyed this one blind, not bad price point. Then relatively rounded peat and smoke. Slight aftertaste ethanol burn, minimal with the honey coming a bit cloyingly. A little more complexity would have gone a long way here, and it shows its youth. Batch #5, 2020 i believe