March 2021
Hellyers Road Aged 16 Years Pinot Noir Cask Finish
We’re ABSOLUTELY THRILLED to present the Grand Finale in our hugely popular series of historic single malts from Australia’s biggest selling whisky distillery to Australia’s biggest community of whisky lovers:
Hellyers Road Aged 16 Years Pinot Noir Cask Finish.
Created Exclusively for The Whisky Club by Master Distiller and long-time fellow Club Member Mark Littler, as his very last whisky project before leaving Hellyers Road after 20 years at the helm, this historically significant malt bears witness to the story of Tasmanian whisky.
Distilled at a time when there were only four other whisky distilleries in Australia and made using Gairdner barley, a variety used in the early 2000s to make some of Tasmania’s best whiskies including Lark and Sullivans famed older single casks, this is a whisky that’s matured for over half the time the Tassie whisky industry has even existed.
Selected from whisky laid down in 2003 and 2004 it was finished last year in the freshest Tasmanian Pinot Noir casks from Tasmania’s famous Tamar and Coal River valleys, the terroirs of the two wine regions imparting an added layer of complexity to compliment Hellyers’ unique marrying process.
As soon as the finishing casks reached an optimum maturation point and a flavour profile that Littler was happy with, they were married using an old Scottish technique that’s unique to Hellyers in Australia and assists with integration of the whisky and helps it mellow out before being broken down to its final ABV for bottling.
The secret is to dilute the whisky in the marrying vat to a unique ‘marrying’ strength before putting it into special ‘marrying casks’ and leaving them to settle for a further six months. Letting the whisky settle at a different ABV in these casks, and changing its solubility with the added water, affects its interaction with the sugars in the oak and this helps the whisky with its amalgamation even further.
Once this process was completed, the whisky was decanted for a third time and broken down to 46.2% ABV and bottled non-chill filtered and natural in colour, exclusively for The Whisky Club.
What the French Oak Tasmanian Pinot Noir casks add to the already elegant and complex whisky is astonishing with the fruity orchard and berry notes of the wine casks really taking it to another level. This fruit forward whisky is complimented by some lovely buttery and integrated oak notes, leading to a fuller palate and a well-rounded finish as the flavour explodes in your mouth just like a chocolate liqueur. The flavours take you on a tour of Tasmania starting off with the apples and cherries of the Huon Valley, then along comes the malt and barley fields of Northern Tasmania before leaving you at one of Tasmania’s many wineries, with the rich wine influence remaining from the cask.
Crafted from Tasmanian barley and pure Tasmanian water, drawn from the best first fill American Oak casks in the distillery and then finished in the freshest Tasmanian wine casks, this is Hellyers Road at its finest.
At a time when limited edition local whiskies can set you back upwards of $250 and Tasmanian whiskies of a similar age fetch $1000s, don’t miss out on some of Hellyers’, but also Tasmania's oldest whisky for only $130 a bottle.
Glenfiddich Grand Cru 23 Year Old Cuvée Cask Finish
We’ve got our hands on something very special from the biggest selling, most awarded Single Malt in the world, and you’re set for a very good time! Elegant and sophisticated, Glenfiddich Grand Cru 23 Year Old Cuvée Cask Finish will have you sparkling in more ways than one.
This rare and exciting whisky is just the third time these casks have been used for a release in Scotch History. The casks used to finish Glenfiddich Grand Cru are French Cuvée Casks, casks that have been used by producers for the first fermentation of wine that will traditionally go on to become France’s most famous sparkling wine after a second fermentation in bottles.
But the process behind the creation of this whisky was more than just finishing 23 year old whisky in Cuvée casks. Both Glenfiddich aged malt and French wine have elevated intricacies and are delicate liquids, so when working with both you need to pay an extra level of attention to detail.
This task was left in the ever-capable hands of Glenfiddich’s legendary Master Blender Brian Kinsman, who went through their aged stock in search of a certain style of whisky from both American and French casks, that when married together and put into the Cuvée casks would not only highlight the wine notes, but also accentuate and elevate the single malt to a whole new level. Once the whisky was ready after up to 6 months finishing, it was then decanted into the only wooden marrying vats in a Scottish distillery for at least 3 months. This marrying technique, unique to Glenfiddich, helps the flavours integrate and fuse together while mellowing out any unwanted sharp notes that may occur.
Two versions of the Glenfiddich Grand Cru 23 Year Old were released back in 2019 - a standard 40% version and a limited release at 43%. We’ve managed to get hold of a small amount of the limited release, which at the higher 43% ABV has a richer, creamier mouthfeel, letting those orchard fruits that Glenfiddich’s known for really pop on the tongue.
Combining subtlety and elegance with a touch of pizazz, this is Glenfiddich - or even whisky - as you’ve never seen it before. With the 40% release selling online for up to $599.00, this super rare old aged Glenfiddich at $395.00 is a must have for drinking or the collection!
I'm tapping out for this month. I do like Hellyers Road, but have myself a bottle of the August 2020 '16 Year Old Single Cask' to get through first. As for the Glenfiddich... while it sounds amazing... the price point does not. I'm starting to believe shipping should be free, especially if you buy the add-ins.
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