Side by side : Method and Madness

Irish Distiller's Midleton Distillery has a programme of innovation where distillers are allowed to experiment with the whiskey making process developing what could be the next addition to the core range

In this blog I'm trying 5 of the range!

Their mantra is:

"Method And Madness is a spirit brand hatched from the minds of the Masters and Apprentices of Midleton Distillery. Our foundation of shared knowledge is unique to the Midleton. When great minds collide, incredible creations can emerge. At Midleton, our Master and Apprentice relationship runs deep, with generations of know how meshing with restless curiosity. There will be trial, and error, and brilliant bottled breakthroughs that start with “What if?” Restless hearts making inspired spirits. Innovation is nothing new to Midleton, but the new micro distillery has provided the copper canvas for experimentation to run free. The whiskeys coming out of this distillers’ playground provide a new taste from Irish whiskey history."

A number of whiskies have been released in this range, including single grains, single malts and single pot stills, see the geeky bit at the bottom, but here I've tried 5 of them:

Dram	Single Grain	Single Malt	Single Pot Still (Chestnut)	Single Pot Still (Acacia)	Single Pot Still (Wild Cherry)
Characteristics	46% ABV Matured in First fill bourbon casks. Finished in Virgin Spanish oak casks.	46% ABV Matured in Bourbon barrels. Finished in French Limousin oak casks.	46% ABV Matured in Sherry & American barrels. Finished in French Chestnut.	46% ABV Matured in Bourbon and Sherry casks. Finished in Acacia wood.	46% ABV Matured in Bourbon and Sherry casks. Finished in Wild Cherry wood.
Distillery notes	This release asked the question: What if we take a step away from the familiar with a Single Grain whiskey aged in Virgin Spanish Oak. Without giving too much away, the two made very good partners, with a taste of gentle wood spice playing off the natural sweetness of the grain. Nose: New pencil shavings, Light rose petal, Fresh rain on pine Taste: Warm toasted oak, Fresh peeled grapefruit, Zesty wood spices Finish: Sweet cereal, Clove spiciness, Fresh mint	A Single Malt whiskey laid down in Midleton in 2002 finished in a French Limousin Oak. A first for us, resulting in light perfume notes giving way to dry barley and ice cream cone wafer. Nose: Freshly shelled peanut, Cereal malt aroma Taste: Cracked cinnamon stick, Ice cream cone wafer Finish: Fragrant bon bons, A hint of toasted barley	A Single Pot Still whiskey aged in chestnut casks, a combination of what we’ve always done in Midleton and what we’ve never tried before. It’s not often we stray from the traditional oak, but one sip suggests it was well worth the deviation. Nose: Red liquorice laces, Fresh rosemary and mint, Grated root ginger Taste:  Sweet fruit and spice, Cinnamon toast, Ripe banana Finish: Aromatic green tea, Dissipating fruit and spice, Rich wood farewell	How would acacia wood casks, famous for ageing French white wines, impact our Irish whiskey? A postulation with a perfect result: a world first for Single Pot Still. This limited-edition release was initially matured in a combination of ex-bourbon and sherry casks, then finished in acacia casks. This calculated risk yields the rewards of the acacia’s tight grain, imparting a rich, nutty, chocolatey flavour, complemented by a mahogany hue. Nose: Sugared almonds, Wood spices, Crushed cloves Taste: Coffee beans, Dark chocolate, Chilli oil Finish: Fading spices, Charred wood, Barley husk	Curiosity got the better of us, but the result was better than we could have hoped. A world first, this limited-edition release is a Single Pot Still Irish Whiskey aged in ex-bourbon and sherry casks, finished in wild cherry wood casks. Wood from the cherry tree is characterised by its porousness; adding complex flavours of fine wine, capers and ginger spice. Nose: Box hedge clippings, Coconut fibre, Shredded ginger Taste: Fresh green herbs, Black tea, Pot still spices Finish: Long and fresh, Prickly spice, Toasted hazelnut
My thoughts:
Appearance	SM, Chestnut, Acacia, Cherry & SG
	Mid gold, swirls form a hairline crack, bead up into a crown and fall as slow thing legs	Mid gold, swirls bead up and fall as slow thin legs, looks oily	Mid gold, swirls bead up into a crown and fall as slow thing legs	Mid gold maybe a hint of red? Swirls bead up and fall as slow thick legs	Pale gold, swirls bead up into a crown and fall as slow thing legs
Nose	Buttered popcorn and vanilla with a hint of strawberry	Light on the nose : orchard and tropical fruit, cereal, a little nail varnish remover. Nutty hint.	Heavier than the SM : herbal and spicy notes, baked apples and vanilla custard. A hint of smoke.	Thick nosefeel (is that even a word?) : Christmas nut bowl - walnuts, hazelnuts, brazil nuts. Brown sugar, musty cupboard notes.	Bitter oak - like sniffing an empty cask, a little black tea.
Palate	Smooth and spicy, a little sweet apple and a load of vanilla.  Much more spicier than I'd imagined, but in a nice way, a hint of smoke or cask char - nice!	Smooth arrival, orchard fruit - apples, pears, apricots and some tropical notes - melon, mango. Slightly drying, a little hint of peppery spice.	Smooth, slightly spicy - woody. A lot more going on than the SM - tropical fruit notes - ripe banana with a little pineapple, coconut and mango.	Smooth arrival but with a kick of spice - ABV seems a lot higher than the 46% Lacks the tropical fruit notes of the previous drams - some milk chocolate and coffee notes	Again smooth - lots of wood from the nose. Hints of fruit - stewed apples and pears with a gingery spice note leaving the mouth dry. Some vegetal notes - damp grass / straw and a citrus hint.
Finish	Lingering dry peppery spice.	Lingering boiled fruit sweets, a little dry.	Medium length tropical fruit notes - drying.	Short nutty finish - oaky vanilla.	Medium length dry oak and a hint of citrus.
Overall	As you'd expect these are 5 completely different drams. The Single Grain does come across as typical - vanilla and spice notes - but the virgin charred casks give a lot more spice and a little smoke note. The Single Malt is typically Irish - orchard fruit, honey and spice - nice but adds some tropical notes more associated with Pot Still drams. Then things start getting interesting.... Chestnut, Acacia and Wild Cherry. Chestnut would be well known to most people for conkers but it has been used for a long time to mature and store wine. Acacia, which comes from forests in northern France, is sawed rather than split into staves, and it’s used by a handful of wineries worldwide primarily white wine such as Sauvignon Blanc. Wild Cherry, again sourced from France, is a porous wood so not idea for storing liquids. For me the Cherry Wood matured dram tasked like liquid wood - the cask finish has killed all other notes. The Acacia gave some lovely nut and chocolate notes, Christmassy but not in the same way as a sherry bomb. The Chestnut was the nicest of the set - the typical tropical fruit notes of the Pot Still gently spiced rather than taken over my the wood. A really interesting set - worth a try!

Many thanks to @thatsdramgood, @WhiskeyCyclist and @MCDrammer for the sample swaps!


Geeky stuff:

Method And Madness Releases
Distillation	Age	ABV	Maturation	Finish
Single Pot Still	NAS	46%	Sherry & Bourbon	Wild Cherry Wood
Single Pot Still	NAS	46%	Sherry & Bourbon	Acacia Wood
Single Pot Still	NAS	46%	Bourbon	Virgin Hungarian Oak
Single Pot Still Single Cask	28yo	56.1%	Bourbon (6 years)	Ruby Port (22 years)
Single Grain Single Cask	31yo	52.5%	Bourbon	-
Single Pot Still	NAS	46%	Sherry & Bourbon	French Chestnut
Single Malt	NAS	46%	Bourbon	French Limousin Oak
Single Grain	NAS	46%	First Fill Bourbon	Virgin Spanish Oak