Paul John Classic Select Cask

imageThe Indian whisky invasion takes another big step with the incredible Paul John Classic.. This is a batch release created by Master Distiller Michael John who first started his journey back in 1993 and later in 2009 became the Master distiller for Paul John whisky through John Distilleries. The whisky is created in Goa where the most modern technology was used also side two traditional copper pot stills that have a capacity of 3000 litres per day.. A while back I had the extreme pleasure of sitting down with Shilton Almeida the regional manager for Paul John whisky, now for anyone who does not know Shilton , he is one of the most polite, enthusiastic people you will ever meet. During our meeting we made our way through the core range then along came the opertunity to try this limited release, made up from a vatting of 100 casks and bottled at 55.2% abv I expected it to be good but didn’t expect it to be as good as I thought it was on the night.. So I had to re visit this malt in my familiar surroundings to re check if it really was that good.. These are my thoughts from the second visit.. Nose.. A lot more fruity than I remember, ripe pear, banana and peaches, vanilla and rich honey are also more prominent.. But wait.. Yes here is the spice.. That explosion of aromas that I remembered just hit me.. Lots of cinnamon and nutmeg, some pepper and ginger.. The fruit and vanilla blend well but they are very much a backdrop to the spice.. A subtle oaky note eventually gets to be noticed after several minutes.

Palate.. Pear and ripe banana with luscious honey drizzled over, some burnt sugared almonds and candied orange are detected before the barrage of spices flood over and bring fresh spice, ginger and nutmeg with a twist of cinnamon and a vanilla essence flavour all the time the fruity side is fighting to get noticed.. Subtle oak mixes with chocolate and coffee notes and then there are some barley sugar flavour that just keep popping up.

Finish.. Long and spicy with a twist of oak.

Thoughts.. Do I like it.. Yes I do.. Will I buy it.. Yes I will.. Do I want more.. You bet I do.. This is quite incredible, the flavours are non stop, it is big, it is bold and has a multitude of layers.. Every time you take a sip it changes, it’s spicy, it’s fruity but it’s never dull..