Lakes Distillery The One Blends

Following quickly on the heels of their Whiskymakers Reserve #3 the @LakesDistillery have released two additions to their The One Fine Blended Whisky range.

Orange Wine and Sherry Cask finishes join the Signature and Port Cask finish, let's see what they are like.

You've probably seen me rave on about the Lake's Whiskymakers Reserve releases - high strength sherry matured single malts, there have been three so far with #2 being my favourite.

These drams are different, they are blends containing Lakes single malt as well as Scottish grain and some combination of Highland, Speyside and Islay malts - the exact distilleries and ratios are a closely guarded secret.

The distillery says:

"The One Collection is a range of fine blended whiskies showcasing the role of innovative cask seasoning in flavour elevation, the focus is not on the blend, but rather the nuances in taste that can be achieved when finished in different casks."

My understanding is that the initial liquid is the same in all four bottles before the final three are finished in their respective wine casks. They have all been released at a very reasonable 46.6% ABV and at a price of £39 for the Signature and £48 for the cask finishes.

Dram	Signature	Orange Wine Finish	Sherry Cask Finish	Port Cask Finish
Characteristics	46.6% ABV Non-chill filtered, natural colour Oct '19	46.6% ABV Non-chill filtered, natural colour 2,994 bottles (in the UK) Jul '20	46.6% ABV Non-chill filtered, natural colour 4,512 bottles Jul '20	46.6% ABV Non-chill filtered, natural colour Jul '19
Distillery notes	This is a complex yet balanced fine blended whisky with hints of stone fruit, treacle, light spice on the nose. Deliciously compelling on the palate with notes of honey-roasted nuts, wood spice, dried fruits and gentle wood smoke. Nose: complex yet balanced with aromas of fresh fruit, treacle, light spice & peat smoke. Palate: rich and balanced with notes of honey-roasted nuts, spice, dried fruits and wood smoke. Finish: long and warming.	This release is a showcase of flavours derived from first-fill American oak casks, seasoned with an exceptionally rare aromatised wine, known as 'Vino de Naranja' from Huelva in Andalucía on the southern coast of Spain.  Nose: fresh lychee, marmalade and hints of tobacco. Palate: gentle peat followed by tropical fruits and candied orange peel. Finish: clean and smooth.	Principally matured in European oak Oloroso and PX casks, this is a deep, rich and intense whisky. Where, traditionally, we use American, French, and Spanish oak to create a timeless sherry-led whisky, it is the characters of Spanish wood which bring a new dimension to the flavour profile. Nose: medjool dates, sun-dried raisins and polished wood. Palate: macadamia nuts, sultanas and dark chocolate with gentle smoke. Finish: long, warming and rich.	This blend was finished in first-fill Tawny Port Casks from Portugal, personally sourced by our whiskymaker Dhavall Gandhi. Nose: stone fruit, cherries, gentle spice ripe plums, wood-smoke. Palate: full bodied and smoky with ripe cherries and plums, leading to hints of nutmeg and black pepper. Finish: long and warming. Smoky with a layer of cherry and plums.
My thoughts:
Appearance
	Mid gold in the glass, swirls cling as a thin line, slowly bead up and fall as slow thin legs.	Mid gold, with a hint of orange in the glass, swirls cling as a thin line, slowly bead up and fall as slow thin legs.	Lovely dark bronze in the glass, swirls cling as a thin line, slowly bead up and fall as slow thick legs.	Pale gold, with a hint of pink in the glass, swirls cling as a thin line, slowly bead up and fall as slow thin legs.
Nose	Orchard fruit, honey, barley and a little smoke. There's a little hint of spice.	Fresh orange, not citric but fruity - maybe marmalade? There's some underlying honey, barley and smoke.	A little 'thicker' on the nose, dried fruit and strawberry jam notes alongside the honey and barley. No smoke on this one.	Again a little 'thicker' on the nose - red berries and black cherries alongside the honey. The barley is much stronger on this one, again no smoke.
Palate	Smooth sweet arrival, a little peppery spice with honey and orchard fruit notes - stewed apples and pears sprinkled with a little cinnamon. A few more sips offer some almond notes and maybe a hint of milk chocolate? It's a little thin but pleasant as a spicy / sweet daily dram.	Again smooth and sweet - tinned orange segments in syrup and again that peppery spice. A few more sips suggest some tropical fruit notes - dried pineapple and mango. Dry smoke notes leave the mouth dry after each sip. This is nice!	Again smooth but this time a little thicker, the peppery spice is here again but it's immediately drying. A few more sips offer the dried fruit and jam notes from the nose. Loads of cherry notes, there is a milk chocolate aftertaste left on the tongue as the liquid disappears. This isn't a sherry bomb as the colour may suggest but it is a nicely crafted sherry dram.	The 'thickest' arrival of the 4 drams, sweet berry and cherry notes a little vanilla followed again by peppery spice and dry smoke. The orchard fruit and peppery spice is more subdued but still there. A few more sips offer a little toffee note and some dried fruit. Very drying. Liking this!
Finish	Short, dry, spicy with a smoke note.	Medium length orange sweetness with a little smoke.	Medium length drying smoke and a little dark chocolate.	Medium length berries, spice and a little smoke.
Overall	If, as suggested, they are all from the same base blend with different finishes then they have taken a lot from those finishes. The colour on the Sherry is amazingly dark (naturally), and the Orange Wine and Port have taken a little orange and pink influence from their casks. The influence on the flavour is equally noticeable. All of the drams shares a dry smoke note - gentle Highland rather than medicinal Islay; a lovely peppery spice and orchard fruits notes are shared. We don't know how much of the The Lakes whisky is in these blends or the re-fill status of the finishing casks but, assuming a high proportion of Lakes and first or second fill casks, it indicates that the Lakes spirit is pretty good at taking on the cask's colour and flavour notes. Again we don't know the proportion of 'other' whisky but I can't wait to see some of these as Single Malts from The Lakes. The distillery website says "Blended whisky with Lakes Single Malt" - we don't know the identity or proportions of any of them but I'd suggest we are talking about Scotch whisky from some of the bigger distilleries Ardmore, Glen Moray and Bunnahabhain with the Grain from Glen Moray's sister distillery Starlaw? Who knows? I'm suggesting Ardmore for the lovely dry smoke notes. Saying that there's no obvious grain notes in these drams, you'd easily think they were single malts. The 46.6% ABV puts them well above comparable blends but then again so does their price - maybe a little too much for what you get? I'd gladly pay a little more for the Orange or Port as a single malt with a little higher ABV - like the WMRs? The Orange Wine and Port came out top for me with the Signature and Sherry Cask just behind.

You can read my full review of the Whiskymaker's Reserve #1 here and a side by side with #2 here and #3 here.

Many thanks to The Lakes Distillery for the samples.