Nordic Whisky #122 - Smögen 4 YO Wee Swede (cask 17/2012)
Smögen 4 YO Wee Swede (cask 17/2012), 62,5 %
Following up from last week, here is another Swedish single cask release. This time the whisky comes from Smögen Distillery. The Smögen 4 YO Wee Swede was distilled on 2012-03-23 and bottled on 2016-08-04. The total outturn was 352 bottles at a whopping 62,5 % ABV. That has to be the Nordic whisky with the highest ABV that I have reviewed so far.
Anyways, the malt used is heavily peated Optic barley. And here is what Pär Caldenby himself says about the Smögen 4 YO Wee Swede:
For the Wee Swede, we took one single Bourbon barrel filled in 2012 and let its contents go through two small 30 litre bloodtub casks of new Swedish oak. After three instalments of two months each, we returned the whisky to the original barrel for marrying. The result is this malty, peaty and characterful whisky. Wee Swede; excellent!
Unfortunately, but predictably, the Smögen 4 YO Wee Swede (cask 17/2012) is very much sold out. It launched at SEK 1096.
Nose: Sweet oaky notes. Fresh planks, vanilla, ashes, pine wood smoke and light fruity notes. Malt and sweet licorice. Given time in the glass I also pick up herbal notes, or maybe that's more grassy notes.
Taste: Rich and full mouthfeel. Oh, so very rich! There's tons of peat, ashes and oaky sweetness here. I also find malt, green notes and again the sweet licorice.
Finish: Medium long finish. Maybe that's not really the finish I feel, but rather the burn marks! This is one very powerful concoction. To quote Monty Python; "This is a bottle with a message in, and the message is BEWARE!". This certainly is not an Australian table wine, though!
Comments: I am still not entirely sure I like the Swedish Oak imprint on young whisky. I might change my mind over time, or I might find it works better with older whiskies. However, I find it a bit heavy handed, and the sweetness spiciness or spicy sweetness it adds is a bit 'weird' for lack of a better word. It sort of feels slightly off - not quite artificial, not quite sickly, but strange... Apart from that this is a great dram, as always from Pär at Smögen.
Score (86/100)
Sláinte! - Thomas
