Oh hooray, Starward number 19. So close to the end now. This is the follow up sibling to the first Small Batch Cherry Wood release. The barley for this Small Batch was smoked with Mesquite Wood Chips like some kind of Argentine BBQ, and like the Cherry Wood, is rumoured to have been matured in Apera barrels. . Formerly available from the distillery cellar door only, the 55% ABV was sold as 500 ml bottles for AUD$399. Despite saying 660 on the bottle, apparently only 300 bottles were produced. I was disappointed by the Cherry Wood, I am hoping this does no worse. N: Quite a vibrant smoke on the nose there is a oily-perfume like fragrance mixing with earthiness and just a twang of metallic notes. A slightly sickly fruit sweetness, adds some distracting complexity that isn’t really needed. P: Slightly abrasive astringency is the first thing I notice. Not a great start. the smoke isn’t powerful or overwhelming, its actually rather lovely and restrained, like catching the smell of a BBQ from down the street. But that dryness pulls the enjoyment away. Something like a young bright malt tries to get through, but falls short. Just nothing here to comment on. F: Long. Some woody tannins and a hint of banana and fruit juice give way to a steadily building chilli heat that is about the most lively aspect of the whole profile. Adding water, nah, adds ashiness to the mix, does nothing for it. Right then, I’m conflicted. The nose had some nice elements; I am a fan of catching whiffs of bbq drifting in the window. But thats where the enjoyment stops. Similar to the Cherry Wood the spirit presence is felt as a sourness, less developed here than in the Cherry Wood but here all the same. The nutty-oiliness I stretched to find in the Cherry Wood is here more prominently. But there is no real development to speak of. From there the palate and finish are pedestrian and almost borderline a literal one trick pony. There is nothing here. Generic whisky with a touch of mild fragrant wood smoke. No development, no nuance, nothing. My conflicting then. This isn’t as conflicting and jarring as the Cherry Wood smoked, there isn’t a sweet sugary beat stick of sour tropical soda pop. But then again I guess it is hard to mess flavours up when there are all but one. What this lacks in poor execution it makes up for in overwhelming blandness. Overall, both better and worse than its sibling. Lets leave smoking to the professionals Starward, hey? Post script. I am wondering if I miss something. My Starwards are all over the shop, and I am wondering yet again if I need to readopt my rank amateur status and start warning people that my rambling reviews are exactly that; the rambling musings of a rock addled whisky numpty. Distiller whisky taste #221 [Pictured here with a dendritic wire of native silver. Argentum, latin for shining or white, is where silver derives its name, and its element symbol Ag. Silver is cool it has the highest electrical and thermal conductivity and brightness of any metal. This silver is from Elura in New South Wales, Australia where it formed from hot fluids passing through some Early Devonian aged limestones and silts/muds. It shines (kind of). This whisky, not so much] Starward running scores Nova: 3/5 Fortis: 3.25/5 Solera: 3.75/5 10th Anniversary: 4.25/5 Vitalis 15th Anniversary: 4.5/5 Whisky Club Exclusive, Maple Cask: 2/5 Whisky Club Exclusive, Cognac Cask: 3.5/5 Projects, Octave Barrels: 3.75/5 Projects, Dolce: 2.25/5 Projects, Bourbon Cask: 3.5/5 Projects, Tawny #2: 3.5/5 Projects, UnExpeated: 3.75/5 Projects, Peated: 2.75/5 Small Batch, Cherry Wood Smoked: 2/5 Small Batch, Mesquite Wood Smoked: 2/5 Small Batch, Hungarian Oak: 3/5 Small Batch, Sticky Toffee Apple: 3.25/5 Small Batch, Chardonnay: 4/5 Whisky Loot Single Barrel Single Malt Exclusive: 3.5/5