There’s a bright new shiny brand of Irish Whiskey from Limerick creating a few waves.
Using artwork designed by a local illustrator Foxes Bow strikes a bold, fresh & contemporary pose – and that’s only the bottle label!
So what of the liquid?
Positively sparkles on my palate!
A light, clean & fresh nose offers up hints of peppery spice.
Smooth mouth coating palate.
Dries out towards the finish but leaves a fruity juiciness gently fading away too.
The bourbon cask maturation with Oloroso & Rye barrel finishing has created a highly entertaining blend with an engaging array of flavours to tease out.
Very enjoyable!
Sláinte
All images courtesy Foxes Bow website & social media.
Attending the Irish Whiskey Awards 2019 has it’s attractions.
Like having a tour round the fabulous – and extremely shiny – copper pot stills of Dingle Distillery itself.
Gleaming! c/othewhiskeynut
As well as tasting the latest Batch 4 release – along with a special Distillery Reserve.
Apart from the spartan label – I had limited time to ask questions. It is fully matured in port casks was all I could glean. Perhaps it’s a component of Batch 4?
Distillery Reserve c/othewhiskeynut
The rich dark fruity nose was a delight.
Very gentle on the palate to begin with. It took a while for the wonderful port influence to make it’s presence known – but when it did – very rewarding.
Not overly complex, it’s youth hadn’t developed hidden depths. A simple yet satisfying single malt.
Batch 4 by comparison was more rounded – even cultured – with greater depth courtesy of the triple barrel ageing – bourbon, port & sherry.
Batch 4 at Dingle c/othewhiskeynut
The nose was gentle & light – yet the palate opened up right from the start.
Sweet warming vanilla & caramel from the ex-bourbon casks mingled with darker fruits from the port interwoven with a gentle drying spice from the sherry.
There was a lot going on and plenty to pull out from this one.
Both were highly enjoyable single malts displaying differing flavours & influences from the woods matured in.
It also demonstrated – to me at least – the art of blending different individual single malt components together to build a more layered & complex whole.
A big thank you to Dingle Distillery for the warm hospitality & conviviality displayed throughout the evenings awards.
And when it came to this Scotch Malt Whisky Society (SMWS) bottling – it was probably true.
The words were better than the content. c/othewhiskeynut
Even at 59.8% the nose was rather soft & sweet. It didn’t give much away.
The palate was more forthcoming.
Vanilla & caramel from the bourbon cask maturation with darker sweeter notes which dried out pleasingly from the Oloroso influence.
Standard Speyside stuff.
The promise of oaky tannins from the wood never developed to the extent I expected given the name – and ultimately I was left rather disappointed.
SMWS back label c/othewhiskeynut
Given Speyside Malts aren’t my favourite flavour profile – the best excitement I gained from this bottle was my own eager anticipation prior to the tasting.
The eloquent writing on the label proved far more attractive than the actual contents.
I shouldn’t have started my exploration of SMWS from here.
WestmeathWhiskeyWorld 