Kinahan's Kasc Project M

I had never heard of Kinahan's when I spotted this eye-catching bottle on the shelf of my local LCBO. On the surface, not much to get excited about: a sourced Irish single malt with no age statement. But a closer look reveals it is non-chillfiltered, uncoloured, 45% alc/vol, and aged in bespoke casks made from 5 types of wood. Is this just a gimmick, or are they onto something?

Nose: love at first sniff. Rich, sweet, and tropical, with leading pineapple and coconut before adding orange peel, banana, and caramel cream. Then the wood kicks in, loads of wood shavings and sawn lumber. I'll never get tired of this.

Taste: Big and tangy on the tongue with the sweet fruits and spicy oaks all kicking in at once. Just slightly drying at the back of the tongue.

Finish: Light bitterness joins the sweeter elements, along with black licorice.

Balance: I don't know where this was distilled but these guys have pulled off something special here. Rather than hiding a ho-hum malt with over-the-top oak, they have taken a clean, well-made spirit and given it a first-rate wood treatment. Kind of reminds me of the Spice Tree from Compass Box. Wasn't exactly cheap but I would definitely buy this again