Scapegrace Manuka Smoked Antipodes Single Cask for LMDW N.Z. Single Malt Whisky 57%ABV 30ml

A Kiwi drinking experience! - manuka smoked whisky made with Manuka smoke Laureate Barley aged in Virgin French Oak casks. Herbs and spice balanced with sweetness. Did Scapegrace let LMDW pillage their warehouse for the best casks they had. The two single casks for LMDW are miles better than any other releases I have tried from this distillery which I didn't really like  - which hopefully is a glimpse of the future for this distillery as the casks get more time to mature.

Tasting Notes

Nose : lively, dynamic. On the first nose, aromas of varnish and charcoal precede scents of bitter orange, apricot stone and roasted mango. After aeration, spices and peppers (cayenne, clove, cinnamon), dark fruits (blueberry, blackcurrant) and salted butter caramel form a dense second olfactory sequence. Gradually, heather honey spreads across the top of the aromatic palette.

Appearance : Burnt Orange

Palate : rich, heady. Deeply malty, the attack quickly evolves towards honeyed (lavender) and jammy (apricot) notes. In the mid-palate, candied citrus fruits (orange, mandarin) ensure a tasty, lively transition. Heady (mimosa), herbaceous (alfalfa) and empyreumatic (eucalyptus, ylang-ylang), with time the finish returns to the citrus notes mentioned above.

Overall : long, balanced. Venturing at times into the world of American rye whiskeys, the start of the finish is at once nobly woody (stave oak), fruity (caramelized apple, melon), spicy (star anise, saffron) and licorice-like. On the aftertaste, flavors of dark chocolate and candy sugar prolong the tasting experience. Retro olfaction recreates the woody, waxy ambience of a cabinetmaker's shop. The empty glass exhales aromas of beechwood-smoked salmon.

Scapegrace is the new giant of NZ whisky the largest distillery in the country. Founded in 2014 Scapegrace started by producing Gin. So far the whisky has been a bit sub-par - packaging and marketing has been perfect but the whisky clearly needs more time - but they have gone big and released a fair amount of whisky internationally at a reasonable price point especially compared to Cardrona which has made better whisky but at a much more boutique scale and very high price. These two distilleries will be naturally compared and will probably form a legendary South Island whisky circuit in the future taking in epic scenery and hopefull epic drams. What makes me hopeful for Scapegrace are the two single casks selected for LMDW in France - these showcase the best that Scapegrace can achieve with top quality active casks - and it is several levels higher than their core releases so give this distillery another 3 years so less active casks can do their work and I think this distillery will shine. In the meantime grab some precocious single casks that already shine as a preview of what is yet to come.