This is now my third offering from Lauceston Distillery, and the natural progression to go to from the “Apera Assault”. Today, we go for a Tawny typhoon. As for the Apera casking I have created a new entry here. The different releases are slightly variable with this one aged in small (100 L) French oak casks which previously held Tawny fortified wine. Tawny is in essence Australian Port for anyone not paying attention at the back of the class. A powerful single cask (#003), cask strength offering with a belting 63.5% ABV. Apparently this is only the third 100 litre cask ever filled at Launceston Distillery and guaranteed to be five years old. N: strong port aromas are tucked away under a slight mustiness, leather and a hint of tobacco. Ground coffee, oak, caramel and a little chocolate combine to make this a decadent and thick nose. Dry glass at the end of this is a return to mustiness, leather, and that tobacco again. P: thick and heavy with a good deal of dry heat. The classic Port profile of Christmas pudding and dried fruit are wonderfully apparent but they are delivered with a creamy oak texture and buttery moreish flavour like you would expect from the best wooded chardonnay. Rich dark fruit, bitter sweet chocolate, and chewy caramel are decadently syrupy and rich. Despite the heft of 63.5% ABV this feels controlled and succulent with an enticing depth of character. Over time I find a little ginger to the spiciness and some brown sugars move forward. F: Long. The warmth of this is lovely it doesn’t move into prickly or spicy territory. The heat is all ginger with a wonderful exit taste of milk chocolate, soft oak, and a treacle like sweetness. A hefty splash of water lets the nose soften into the caramel and leather, which is fitting as I melt back into the new leather arm chairs that now adorn my rock room. The palate also softens, the dry heat fades and the mouth coating velvety caramel comes to play. Chocolate fans rejoice. Chardonnay fans, commiserations, the oak didn’t like water. The finish becomes all about the chocolate and a transition from treacle to more of a golden syrup. Perhaps a half teaspoon would be fine to meet everything in the middle. Tawny typhoon. I’m coining it here and now. What a powerhouse of rich depth and flavour. I think the Apera was the little brother of the family that just towed the middle ground in a high performing family. Not bad, but not the star. Tawny typhoon here, boom. I know nothing about the Australian Tawny industry, but I suspect the liquid that was originally in this barrel was something equally impressive to behold. The casking has been exceptional, no rough edges. Perfectly moderated French Oak that contributes without being overly domineering but enough interest and intrigue to take this that bit beyond the typical port casked whisky competitors and push it beyond the territory of “good”. With only 157 bottles released this is a real Tasmanian rarity that I have been fortunate to try, and I doubt we will ever see another taste on this app. Should you get the chance though, take it. Well worth the dive into its thick depths. [Pictured here with a ~480-440 million year old stichtite serpentinite, or atlantisite to any crystal healing hippies out there. Serpentinite is a hydrothermally metamorphosed ultramafic rock (from the mantle) that in this instance is packed with pretty lilac coloured stichtite. Stichtite is only known from 14 locations globally. One of these locations is Dundas in Tasmania. A fittingly rare rock type, from the island that produced this rare liquid] Price is for a 500 ml bottle. Distiller whisky tasting #107