Retribution Chestnut Cask finish

I had a really interesting chat with Richard Lock from Retribution Distilling at Kendal Whisky Festival in December.

I tried a couple of his drams and he allowed me to take an sample of a Chestnut cask matured dram home to review!

I'd not heard much about Retribution before, Richard was a home brewer who after studying Brewing and Distilling at Heriot Watt built a small distillery in his shed. After 6 months in the garden shed he moved to a local farm and started producing rum, whisky and more recently vodka on his direct-fired stills.

Richard has started experimenting with English Peat for his barley, different yeasts for fermentation and interesting wood for maturation.

Bottler info:

13m Chestnut

13m 2nd fill ex-bourbon

59% ABV

3 x virgin Chestnut octaves were filled cask numbers W021, W027 and W028.

 

They were emptied after 13 months into what was cask W001 (first whisky cask ever filled), this now has cask number W066. 

 

It will be released in September this year.

Anyway what did it taste like?

My thoughts:

Appearance: bronze in the Glencairn, swirls cling as a thin line, take some time to bead up and fall as slow thin legs.

 

A slight problem with the cork!

Nose: thick musty dunnage funk, you'd think sherry (not just from the colour) but it's just lacking a little of the fruitiness. This is more treacle toffee, maple syrup and damp cardboard. There's some caramelised nuts, liquorice and a little mint. Some berry hints and a little dried fruit - quite a complex dram.

Palate: Thick, sweet arrival, immediately drying. There's a lot of the toffee, syrup and nut notes from the nose alongside dry oak and some red berries. Liquorice and orange zest take centre stage with a subsequent sips, fading to dry spice as the liquid disappears. Another sip reveals toffee pennies and a little hint of smoke.

Finish: lingering dry oak spice, berries and lots of toffee.

Overall: At only 26 months old this isn't whisky yet, but blind you'd never guess, there's no hint of new make and no off notes - it's very drinkable. The Chestnut cask has had a huge influence on both the colour and character of the dram. The ABV is really not noticeable - this is a very dangerously drinkable dram! I'll be buying a bottle when it comes out later this year!