Bakery Hill Peated Malt Cask Strength

Matured in Tasmania with none of that artificial or industrialised behaviour this is a cask strength whisky enriched with peat

• Nose: grassy, floral, smooth by any standard given the ABV, gentle earthy peat, juicy stone fruits peaches and nectarines slowly opens up to reveal some vanilla fudge. With water big time vanilla and Turkish delight, peat was gentle before it’s really not there at all now, more tobacco though.

• Pallet: pretty hot as expected, but it’s not savage, it is spicy as in chilli, but fruit notes are there, peat is still gentle and even some vanilla little big of sea spray as well. With water spicy arrival, more nectarine there now, peat more prominent in the development, earthiness is still there, provides nice contrast, beautiful candied vanilla.

• Finish: Vanilla fades out, ginger, almond and some tobacco smoke fades out, nice spices to a cigar finish! With water mouth filling, vanilla dulls down to end pretty savoury and earthy, not much tobacco here this changes a lot with water, there is almost a foosty note

• Mark neat -8.3, with water – 8.5.

Really good stuff, id look out for this where-ever you are. This is another whisky favoured by Jim Murray, who gave it 92.5

Two years ago Niek & Ilse came back from Australia with a couple of bottles from Bakery Hill in Victoria. They brought me back a couple of miniatures as well, including this Bakery Hill Peated Cask Strength.

Ha, a very aromatic nose with loads of white fruit, but also vanilla and cherries. Sweet like cherry juice, a bit like glühwein. And yet. It also has a lovely salty element on the nose, maybe due to the peat that was used? It is very prominent, without becoming dominant. Well seasoned. With water, the fruit fades a bit to make room for wet earth and water plants.

The powerful attack first offers a whole plethora of spices, before the fruit kicks in. Again cherry juice, upholstered with toffee and acacia honey. The peat is just great. The smoke really enhances the whole. Diluted it becomes even more accessible and sweeter still. Cherries all the way.

The finish, even diluted, is wonderfully long and smoky sweet.

A great whisky from Down Under, actually. The peat works wonders with the sweet esters. Not exactly cheap with a price tag of about 120 AUD (shipping not included), but well worth the effort. Unfortunately not available in Europe since the domestic demand already outstrips the supply.