Adnams is an English brewer famous for their variety of beer and the quality of it. Apparently. It’s one of those brewers that you never see in shops in The Netherlands, at least I haven’t come across it yet.

Anyway, this distilled bitter is aged for three years and with their other spirits that have been produced regularly, you could easily say that they’re trying their hand at distilling the way American craft distillers do it. By producing everything from vodka, to eau-de-vie, whisky and whatever comes in between.

Adnams Spirit of Broadside at The Whisky Exchange

Sniff:
Very very malty at first. And young, but more in a cheerful, youthful way than that it is raw and unrefined. Spicy with cinnamon, pepper and toasted oak. There’s chestnuts and other nuts. I get a slight hint of cardboard and staggeringly massive quantities of banana. Banana, banana and more banana.

Sip:
Gentle, smooth and warm. Fruity with peach, banana and black pepper. Mostly sweet spices like allspice. Quite fresh and youthful again with a spicy edge. Oh, and then it continues on like banana and banana bread.

Swallow:
Oh, wait, is that banana? Strange. Toffee, wood and allspice. The finish isn’t too long but has nice hints of bread and honey.

For a three year old ‘trial’ from a brewer, I am quite enthusiastic about it. There’s quite a bit of flavour and enough to keep it interesting for a while. The huge banana notes were a bit of a surprise and have the risk of it becoming boring quite quickly. But, at not even € 40 it’s pretty cheap for a craft product from an upstart distillery.

Adnams Spirit of Broadside, Distilled bitter, 43%, 3 years old, £ 33.95 at The Whisky Exchange.

Thanks to Billy Abbott for the sample!