Amrut Naarangi

Amrut and I have had a love affair ever since I picked up a glass of the Amrut Fusion and wondered

That was over five years ago and since then I have managed to put every single Amrut release on my shelf. No mean feat given it's almost complete scarcity weeks after release. But where there's a will there's a way.

I like to think of Ashok, their GM of International Sales, Global Brand Ambassador and over all good guy, as a good friend and so it was at a small dinner at a mutual friends' house that Ashok decided to surprise us all. For he had with him this particular expression (three months before it's official launch) which he decided to share it with all of us.

At the time he made me promise not to write anything about it and so I refrained from taking any notes and simply sat down to enjoy the whisky. Luckily for me I had the chance to try it again a few days ago at a friends' place who also managed to secure me a bottle!

In line with Amruts' increasingly crazy experimental gene this single malt has seen a truly unique maturation. Matured first for three years in bourbon the spirit is transferred to a specially prepared Oloroso Sherry cask.

For three years that barrel had been sitting with Oloroso Sherry that had been mixed with orange peels. Oranges from Madikeri located in the picturesque Western Ghats of India which imparted a truly unique citrus and sherry combination to the oak.

My sample is from a brand new bottle and served at 50% ABV

Lightly toasted oak. Orange peel (duh). Dry leaves. Rich sherry. Chocolate. Mint leaf. Cinnamon. Nutmeg. Jute bag. Vanilla. This is a super rich nose and the orange is quite prominent, though, thankfully it does not overpower. Amrut noses are seldom flawed and neither is this one. 22/25

Good weight. Nice body. Coats the mouth with chocolate. Cinnamon. There's that orange again. But more of an orange cake this time. Oak. Black pepper. Ginger. This is a nice twist. Makes me want to bust out my Compass Box Orangerie and conduct a head to head. This ticks just the right amount of unusual for me. 22/25

Extremely long. Oily. Lip smacking cinnamon. Best of part of the experience. 23/25

I'll be honest. I walk into an Amrut knowing that I'm going to like it and, quite frankly, am unashamed to be biased. They've done a lot of good in a very short space of time. Ashok is a solid gentleman who loves his craft and lives by it. And when you can pull of bizarre experiments like this then what's not to like?

89

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