Single malt is far from being the sole passion of Glenmorangie Master Distiller Dr Bill Lumsden. The arch experimenter (sometimes jarringly dubbed the Willy Wonka of whisky) also has a penchant for high fashion, early Alan Partridge – and fine wine. He’s equally at home discussing Sassicaia as he is Speyside.
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So when Glenmorangie launched its Pursuit of Passion Wine Cask Collection earlier this year – a £7,740 trio of long-aged single malts part-matured in Margaux, Corton-Charlemagne and Barbaresco wine casks – the name was a good deal more than mere marketing spin. Furthermore, Lumsden was perpetuating the long, proud connection between the worlds of wine and whisky.
Historical coincidence and sheer practicality play a role here. As Scotch whisky’s appeal grew during the 19th century, the dearth of locally grown oak meant that blenders were forced to look elsewhere to find casks in which to age and marry their spirit. Luckily enough, the docks of Leith, Glasgow and Aberdeen were heaving with barrels of wine imported from European wine regions: most famously Sherry, but also Port, Madeira and claret. So the idea of using an old Margaux cask to mature Scotch certainly wasn’t invented in the 21st century. What began as necessity – whisky makers used these casks simply because they were there – has, over time, become a complex synergy that distillers have probed and refined.
The Sherry factor
Scott Adamson, Tomatin. Credit: John Paul
We’ve been buying Sherry casks for over 100 years,’ says Scott Adamson, global brand ambassador and blender for Highland single malt-maker Tomatin. ‘It’s something we’ve known for so long that works so well for Tomatin.’
Like Lumsden, Adamson is a wine enthusiast. ‘I think Sherry is a wine for whisky lovers,’ he says. ‘It’s got a place, a story and diversity, just like Scotch.’ Tomatin’s latest range, the limited-edition Sherry Collection, bridges the gap between grape and grain: showing wine lovers how whisky and Sherry can combine to create something delicious, and displaying Sherry’s diversity to whisky fans.
The range eschews whisky’s commonplace use of ex-oloroso casks – the source of those classic Christmas cake/dried fruit flavours – in favour of cask finishes in ex-manzanilla, palo cortado and Pedro Xime?nez wood. And these are ex-bodega casks – in other words, casks that have been retired from their respective Sherry-ageing soleras.
Why does this matter? Most Sherry casks used for whisky today are bespoke creations – coopered, ‘seasoned’ with Sherry, then emptied and transported to Scotland, all to the precise specifications of the distiller. They tend to be more ‘active’ – in other words the oak (be it American or European) imparts more flavour. Meanwhile ex-bodega casks are decades-old and inactive. Here, the whisky derives characters from the cask’s previous contents, not the wood itself.
Wine-cask wizardry
Dalmore distillery
Modern-day distillers have explored the wide world of wine. Tomatin, for instance, released its Italian Collection, which used ex-Marsala, Amarone and Barolo casks, last year. Meanwhile Lumsden has tried everything from Meursault to Bolgheri. But working with wine wood can be a tricky business: overdo it and the whisky can develop over-sweet, jammy notes.
For Lumsden, patience is key – he believes that those vinous notes diminish with time – while Adamson reckons wine casks have a brief moment where they’re at their peak. ‘You can get a fantastic balance between whisky and cask – then six to 12 months later, the wine might have completely overwhelmed it,’ he says. ‘The window of opportunity is much smaller.’
At their best, wine cask-matured whiskies are some of the most memorable and distinctive drops around. Think Dalmore’s deep exploration of Gonza?lez Byass Sherry and Graham’s Port casks;…
Source : https://www.decanter.com.master.public.keystone-prod-eks-euw1.futureplc.engineering/spirits/whiskies-for-wine-lovers-at-christmas-12-perfect-bottles-546464/
