There seems to be a lot or Irish @TweetTastings this year - I guess that's because there are a lot of new Irish
distilleries and Independent Bottlers coming online.
Hinch Distillery are just finishing their Distillery with the first spirit expected to flow during the summer. As with a lot of Irish distillers they've bought in casks of Irish whiskey to mature and blend themselves.
Hinch is located just south of Belfast in Northern Ireland, their £15m distillery
is nearing completion.
To keep the cash flow moving until their own whiskey is ready they have sourced casks from Great Northern Distillery (GND) from just across the border in Ireland with some of their older stock coming from Cooleys before it was told to Beam Suntory. They've then blended these cask to their own unique recipes and finishes to produce what we are trying in the Tweet Tasting and what you can buy today.
The 3 dram's we received were:
A hint of liquorice comes through on the palate as the peat gently mellows awaiting your next sip.
My thoughts:
Appearance: light gold in the glass, swirls clink before falling as slow thin legs. Initial nose : lemon bonbons!
Nose: lemons all the way - lemon bonbons, lemon drizzle cake and lemon peel. There's some orchard fruit and a little vanilla.
Palate: smooth, slightly thin arrival, more lemons and a lovely bite of spice. Soapy, grassy notes with almonds and orchard fruit notes.
Finish: gentle spice, lot's of orchard fruit - nice!
My thoughts:
Appearance: gold in the glass, swirls cling and fall as slow thick legs. Initial nose: dried fruit.
Nose: Dried fruit, figs, dates and a big pinch of icing sugar. Some brown sugar or toffee notes after a little time in the glass. With some pecan nuts.
Palate: the high grain % is obvious in the vanilla and icing sugar but it's nice - I think the malt adds a little orchard fruit and spice to the dram. A few more sips offer the dried fruit, figs and dates from the nose. Nice!
Finish: long lingering orchard fruit, a little dried fruit and a gentle ginger spice. Nice.
Other tweeter's thoughts:
My thoughts:
Appearance: pale gold in the glass - almost white wine. Swirls cling before falling as slow thin legs. Initial nose: chargrilled pineapple smoke
Nose: salty peaty note - with a hint of new make. Dirty rags and diesel fuel. A little time in the glass offer grilled pineapple. Maybe this needs a little more time in the cask?
Palate: smooth sweet arrival, tropical fruit notes from the nose - pineapple and mango with a drying icing sugar note. Much better in the mouth than on the nose. A little ginger spice and a citrus fizz on the tongue - nice!
Finish: long lingering smoke with the tropical fruit and spice notes. Nice!
Other tweeter's thoughts:
Many thanks to @TheWhiskyWire for organising and @HinchDistillery for sharing their drams!
Also included in the package, if you could spot them in the GIF, were two bottles wrapped in bubble wrap and labelled "Don't Open" until the end of the Tweet tasting.
Most people didn't open the package, I didn't, and after the tasting the Hinch guys led a live video of two of their experimental Innovation drams, #1 and #2, you can watch it here.
#1 was finished in Amarone wine casks and #2 was finished in Whitewater Imperial Stout casks - both were excellent and to be honest better than the first 3 we'd tried. This shows how good the team are at blending and I for one can't wait to see what they come out with next!
To keep the cash flow moving until their own whiskey is ready they have sourced casks from Great Northern Distillery (GND) from just across the border in Ireland with some of their older stock coming from Cooleys before it was told to Beam Suntory. They've then blended these cask to their own unique recipes and finishes to produce what we are trying in the Tweet Tasting and what you can buy today.
Only the finest Ex Bourbon Casks are selected for extra maturation in Virgin American Oak Barrels for a minimum of one year.
5yo Double Wood(43% ABV Blend) : 25% Single Malt (5yr) and 75% Grain Whiskey (5yr). Matured for 4 years in first fill Ex Bourbon Casks, followed by 1 year in Virgin American Oak.
This second maturation gives the whiskey subtle depth, natural colour and character as befitting the use of "two woods".
10yo Sherry Cask Finish (43% ABV Blend) : 15% Single Malt (17yr) and 85% Grain Whiskey (10yr) matured in American oak barrels, before being finished in Oloroso Sherry casks for a minimum of 12 months.
Perfectly matured over time in American Oak, our gently maturing Whiskey blend is finished in the finest Oloroso Sherry casks from Jerez.
Finished for a minimum of 12 months, the process enhances the golden liquid’s outstanding character and flavour.
Sweet tar and a smoky, woodish nose with immediate strong peat flavours on the palate. Lingering and nuanced fruit undertones survive the peat storm.
Peated Single Malt (43% ABV) : Triple distilled, produced using heavily peated malt and aged just shy of 4 years.
A hint of liquorice comes through on the palate as the peat gently mellows awaiting your next sip.
Lets see what they were like:
Appearance: light gold in the glass, swirls clink before falling as slow thin legs. Initial nose : lemon bonbons!
Nose: lemons all the way - lemon bonbons, lemon drizzle cake and lemon peel. There's some orchard fruit and a little vanilla.
Palate: smooth, slightly thin arrival, more lemons and a lovely bite of spice. Soapy, grassy notes with almonds and orchard fruit notes.
Finish: gentle spice, lot's of orchard fruit - nice!
Other Tweeter's thoughts:
This was Ed's first TweetTasting so we had to be gentle with him!
Appearance: gold in the glass, swirls cling and fall as slow thick legs. Initial nose: dried fruit.
Nose: Dried fruit, figs, dates and a big pinch of icing sugar. Some brown sugar or toffee notes after a little time in the glass. With some pecan nuts.
Palate: the high grain % is obvious in the vanilla and icing sugar but it's nice - I think the malt adds a little orchard fruit and spice to the dram. A few more sips offer the dried fruit, figs and dates from the nose. Nice!
Finish: long lingering orchard fruit, a little dried fruit and a gentle ginger spice. Nice.
Other tweeter's thoughts:
Appearance: pale gold in the glass - almost white wine. Swirls cling before falling as slow thin legs. Initial nose: chargrilled pineapple smoke
Nose: salty peaty note - with a hint of new make. Dirty rags and diesel fuel. A little time in the glass offer grilled pineapple. Maybe this needs a little more time in the cask?
Palate: smooth sweet arrival, tropical fruit notes from the nose - pineapple and mango with a drying icing sugar note. Much better in the mouth than on the nose. A little ginger spice and a citrus fizz on the tongue - nice!
Finish: long lingering smoke with the tropical fruit and spice notes. Nice!
Other tweeter's thoughts:
Many thanks to @TheWhiskyWire for organising and @HinchDistillery for sharing their drams!
Also included in the package, if you could spot them in the GIF, were two bottles wrapped in bubble wrap and labelled "Don't Open" until the end of the Tweet tasting.
Most people didn't open the package, I didn't, and after the tasting the Hinch guys led a live video of two of their experimental Innovation drams, #1 and #2, you can watch it here.
#1 was finished in Amarone wine casks and #2 was finished in Whitewater Imperial Stout casks - both were excellent and to be honest better than the first 3 we'd tried. This shows how good the team are at blending and I for one can't wait to see what they come out with next!
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