Belgian Owl 4 Year Old Cask Strength

The Belgian Owl is no longer an unknown distillery. Ever since getting a very high score from Jim Murray (95,5 in the 2010 Bible), Etienne Bouillon and his crew in Grace-Hollogne, Belgium, have been hard at work putting out product. This 4 Year Old whisky was bottled at an almost unbelievable cask strength of 74,1%, the highest ABV I have ever tasted in a bottled whisky.

The nose is accessible, despite the high ABV. I get vanilla, honey, lime and pears, dried apricots, dried grass, oats and quite a bit of mint. After a few moments, though, it turns into cherry gum.

The attack is predictably scorching. I do not taste anything, bar some breakfast cereals. Again the cherry gum. Let me add some water. It remains sharp, though. Clearly a Young beast. Lime and pears are accompanied by Apple. Fruity and creamy on the one hand, but quite a bit of wood on the other hand, making it even astringently bitter. From the herb rack, I remember ginger and pepper.

The finish can be called long, but the wood takes over completely. Feels like licking the inside of a cask. Pity.

I had my first taste of this at the Ghent festival in 2011, but was happy to taste it again. It is something special, to say the least. Not only because of the very high ABV, but also because it is Belgian. But 65 EUR for a 50cl bottle is way to expensive. And Jim Murray with his high score? Well, it is not the first time that I totally disagree with that guru.

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