Nordic Whisky #35 - Smögen Sherry Project 1:2

Smögen Sherry Project 1:2, 3 YO, 55,7 %

Smögen Sherry Project 1:2

This is the second installment in Pär Caldenby's ambitious and fun Sherry Project. If you have not already done so, then please read out interview with Pär on the series and the first release (Sherry Project 1:1) here.

So this is Smögen Sherry Project 1:2. Distilled in July 2011 and matured in casks 28, 30, 31 and 39. It was bottled on 2015-01-15, and the total outturn was 959 bottles.

This whisky was first matured for 2 years and 10 months in virgin European oak quarter casks (100 liters), before receiving an 8 month finish in a 1st fill sherry butt. The malt type used is Optic, peated at 50+ ppm phenols.

When this whisky was released in Sweden on March 26, 2015. It was sold out in about 1 minute!

Nose (23/25): First thing that hits me is how well integrated this is. Is this really just 3 YO? Smooth! Delicate sherry notes dance a tight and sensual tango with the peaty Smögen character. Dark fruits - ripe plums, apples, figs, apricots and raisins. Fresh licorice, light baking syrup, maple syrup, and milk chocolate. Soft wood smoke, warm coals and ashes. Very appealing nose - a bit seductive.

Taste (21/25): Peppery smoke and ginger make up the initial attack. Second wave brings the fruity guys - baked apples filled with figs, closely followed by a small armada of darker fruits.

Finish (22/25): Warm and comforting. Honey, white pepper, puffs of wood smoke, mild oakiness, dark chocolate and mellow sherry notes.

Balance (22/25): A  cracking good dram! If Pär Caldenby keeps raising the stakes for the final two installments in the Sherry Project we are truly in for a treat. Keep your eyes peeled people!

Score (88/100)

Sláinte! - Thomas