Understanding cask influence on whisky is a key aspect of understanding whisky itself. It is also key to explore my own taste preferences.
Starting my journey with the top-selling brands in the world might have made sense from an availability point of view. On the other hand, exploring the different influences that can shape the taste of single malt is key to identifying what I prefer. Especially at this early stage of my journey.
This also has a convenient reason. There are many good review sources out there, and the temptation to seek out bottles based on these suggestions is great. Yet, there also lies the risk for disappointment: the risk of blindly following advice without scrutiny is high. Unless we know our preference, and identify those reviewers whose taste is closer to ours, we cannot judge if a certain person has a completely different palate than ours. Some taste benchmarking helps to find those that work for me (and you).
The next few steps of my journey are dedicated at starting to explore the influence of casks, and shortly, peat. Let’s start with the two main cask influences used in Single Scotch Malt.
Sherry and Bourbon cask influence
In the next couple of reviews, I will go into the entry-level whiskies I chose to start exploring the influence of sherry and bourbon casks on whisky aromas and taste. These bottles won’t be sherry bombs or pure bourbon-aged drams. They are a teaser to test my preferences and might also be the chance to suggest other drams for the start of a whisky journey away from the widely available Gles. Do not worry, I will delve into the world of pure sherry- and bourbon-aged drams further along the journey.
These are the whisky I am reviewing in this part of the journey, links to be added as I post the relevant reviews and the final side-by-side tasting.
Aberlour 12 year old double oak matured
Plus a last minute addition: Tomatin Legacy
In order to set the scene for the next posts I decided to try and use the infographic below, I would love your feedback if find this format helpful.
Barrel ageing 101 Infographic
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