The original wine cask trio of the Knappogue Castle finishing series featured three of my favorite Irish whiskies of all time. So when I saw this packaging on a shelf again, I considered it a must-buy. This is a Cognac barrel-aged whiskey. The only one I’ve had was the Glenlivet 14, which was very underwhelming. Hoping that KC can do a better job with theirs. Let’s check it out. Nose: The green apple and pear that I associate with KC jumps right out of the glass. Plum, date, fig, and raisin. Green grape. Honey, toffee, caramel, and vanilla. A touch of shortbread cookie. Walnut, almond, and cashew. Slightly “perfumy.” Oak. Palate: Big on the shortbread cookie, along with honey, toffee, caramel, and vanilla. Green apple and pear are more in the background now. Golden raisin with some date and fig. Apricot and green grape. Some plum and a ton of orange citrus. A little baking spice tingle with some oak spice. Finish: Caramel, vanilla, and toffee. Plum, apple, pear, and apricot. Golden raisin, date, and fig. Cashew, walnut, and almond. White pepper, clove, nutmeg, and oak. Moderate-long finish, leaning toward the latter. Solid pour. This definitely does not stack up to the wine cask-trio. The cognac cask does not give the Knappogue base spirit the depth that the wine casks did. Judged independently of those, however, I find this really enjoyable. This ran me $70. I think it’s a fine value at that price. Definitely a worthwhile purchase and another winner from Knappogue Castle. Wherever they’re sourcing from—and the casks that they’ve been aging their juice in—it’s a winning combo. Solid stuff. 4/5 even.