So, this turns out to be a re-tasting. I had completely forgotten that I had already tried and reviewed this whisky in 2021. With my sample not being empty and just sitting on the shelf for a year or 2, it turns out things can completely be gone from memory.

Before publishing this review I decided to check my blog to see if I hadn’t tried it before, or maybe Tom had. Just to make sure I don’t make an ass out of myself. ‘Ass turning’ is limited with at least finding the review. I then chose to go ahead anyway, since it’s interesting to see how things hold up when their initial hype has waned a bit.

Batch R-01, or their initial regular release. I’ve had the pleasure of tasting some of the spirit that one of their marketing people brought to festivals in the past, before it was three years old and had only been in bourbon casks. I was quite impressed with it.

Now, their initial release has been done (and quite a few subsequent ones as well), and for some reason they decided to use a sizeable mixture of casks. I never really understand that, but that’s nothing new.

What I am wondering about is whether the Chinkapin is virgin oak. Because contrary to rye and bordeaux casks (which is about their previous contents), Chinkapin is about the tree. It probably is, but it’s a bit inconsistent.

Anyway, ‘yet another new distillery’, with hopefully a youthful spirit that has somewhere to go in 10, 15 years.

Sniff:
Some rich on notes of baked apple, vanilla and white oak. A bit of dryness, with straw, coconut husk. A very light, slightly acidic smoke.

Sip:
Quite a sharp arrival. Black pepper, acidity and earthy peat, seaweed. A hint of salinity, soft apple, barley. Vanilla and a bit of oak too.

Swallow:
The finish retraces the palate and has all the same flavors.

Slightly more rich than Talisker and Torabhaig, but otherwise quite comparable. So on one hand their loyal to their region, which is a good thing. On the other hand, they’re not doing anything off the beaten path, which makes it stand out less.

I think compared to before it has opened up a little bit and shows a bit more diversity in flavor. However, the rating is still a bit lower than it was, since the hype is gone. Two years ago new distilleries were a bit more novel than they are now.

Quite telling, to myself, that I am more susceptible to hype about whisky than I gave myself credit (or debit) for…

83/100

Still regularly available for about € 60 in The Netherlands