Lark Distillery TWAS Special

I recently attended A Tasmanian Whisky Appreciation Society (TWAS) tasting night, where the theme of the night was the state of Tasmanian whisky. We tasted the Sullivan's Cove Double Cask, the Nant first release single malt, the Trappers Hut 9 year old, a Lark Distillery special TWAS bottling, a small batch Hellyers Road, an Old Hobart Distillery Sherry Barrel, as well as young spirit from the new Mackey's Disitllery and from a barrel from independent bottler Tim McDuckett (I'm really not sure of the spelling of this person's name - so if I got it wrong, I do apologise!).

The fourth dram of the night was a special TWAS bottling from the Lark Distillery. Apparently this is a bottle of something they are sending to the US market. It's 6 years old, 20% peated (I'm not sure exactly what that means) and was finished in tawny port casks.

The nose is more savoury than sweet. The main smell is a smoky, creamy, malty oakiness. Hints of vanilla, currents and licorice come through along with the barest floral note. A very nice nose indeed.

The taste starts fiery and warm, but is quickly tamed by a creamy, earthy, nutty vanilla wave. Oak, currents, cinnamon also weave in and out. This is a genuinely complex dram. A little water emphasises the cinnamon, vanilla and currents, but all the flavours remain, just in slightly differing amounts.

The finish is long and warm, full of fading currents, and a creamy cinnamon spiciness that leaves your mouth tingling.

To be honest, I'm not terribly impressed with this... not impressed it's being bottled and sent overseas! Far too good. While if I had to toss-up whether between this and the Sullivans Cove Double Cask, I would probably prefer the Sullivans Cove, it's a very close one. This was genuinely excellent, and definitely speaks well of Lark products if they can keep this up for a few years.