Still Waters Stalk & Barrel Single Malt - Cask 8

In talking to Barry Bernstein upon my recent visit to the distillery, he said that so far cask 8 or cask 11 was his favourite, and he wasn't sure which. Cask 8 is a single malt (from 100% Ontario Corn, as all the single malts at Still Waters) which comes in at 46%, and was matured in a bourbon cask for a few months over 3 years.

Nose: This cask carries roasted nutty flavours (cashews and almond) in addition to the characteristic malty, oily, floral notes - and the fruit in it is quite candied (banana laffy taffy and apple starburst). This is rather than the fresh fruit notes of cask 11 or the baked fruit notes of cask 1. 87%

Taste: More sweet than let on from the nose. Slightly spicy, and a little acidic - with light bourbon notes, and some white grape, cucumber, and green beans which are quite different than the other casks. Other than that, the typical oily nature and the grassy chamomile notes are still present with some weighty maltiness. However, I find the taste a bit watery at 46% for this one, and I do wish this one had spent some more time in wood. 82%

Finish: Oak, malt, and caramel, and a touch of earthiness I didn't find in the nose or the taste. A bit woody and dense with a concentration of spice, and some interesting notes of green beans. 83%

Intrigue: This is ok, but not as good as the other casks I have tried. I thought the candied fruit nature worked out pretty well in this one, but the rest of the components didn't quite come together the way I would have hoped. Also - I do wish for a bit more flavour in this spirit. 83%

Weighting the nose 25%, taste 35%, Finish 15%, and Intrigue 25% the overall grade is 85. For a direct comparison to other casks see my post at: whiskywon.wordpress.com/2014/10/…