As a cask comes to maturity, Finn curates sampling sessions in interesting and relaxing environments, with friends, whisky experts and trusted partners to discover the personality of each cask and gauge the experience each dram evokes.
All the best distillers pride themselves on crafting whisky with a distinctive flavour, which is determined by the water source, grain and barley, the peat and malting, and their distilling processes. High quality original spirit is integral to every cask we bottle.
The cask itself interacts with the whisky over time. The type of wood plays a big role, as do treatments such as the whiskies are aged in a variety of types of casks. The whiskies are aged in former sherry or bourbon casks, augmenting the cask influence. External conditions such as air temperature, pressure and humidity also interact with the cask producing a knock-on effect that makes the spirit inside unique.
Finn uses these factors to balance each FT whisky experience. He may sample a cask and decide to leave it on the rack, allowing age to further develop its personality. He might decide to re-rack a whisky in a new cask to add a finishing touch. Or, he might simply deem it ready. When Finn decides the flavour is perfectly balanced, it’s time to bottle the whisky.
This is a cask that I have been looking forward to bottling for a very long time. Staoisha is the heavily peated spirit produced at Bunnahabhain - a distillery that, despite being on Islay, is better known for its unpeated style.
Bunnahabhain has long been one of my favourite distilleries. My first ever trip to Islay saw me visit the distillery to pick up a leaking cask that was in imminent need of bottling. It was eye opening to see the fragility of the oak holding this valuable liquid; a reminder of the beautiful contradiction between simplicity and complexity that underpins the art of whisky making.
Just three ingredients are the foundation of every malt whisky: water, barley and yeast. Yet this 10 Year Old Staoisha single cask showcases the endless possibilities of flavour that they can create. The heavily peated malt used for producing Staoisha imparts a salty smokiness that is so typical of the Islay region, perfectly complementing the inherent spiciness of the spirit. But what strikes me most about this whisky is an underlying fruitiness that is somewhat unexpected. Over the course of a decade, salty smoke has harmonised with orchard fruits to create a single cask of distinction. It is a delightfully complex example of a simple fact: Bunnahabhain Distillery deserves its place at the top table of scotch whisky.
Staoisha is the heavily peated spirit produced at Bunnahabhain - a distillery that, despite being on Islay, is better known for its unpeated style.
Over the course of a decade, salty smoke has harmonised with orchard fruits to create a single cask of distinction.
The heavily peated malt used for producing Staoisha imparts a salty smokiness that is so typical of the Islay region, perfectly complementing the inherent spiciness of the spirit. But what strikes me most about this whisky is an underlying fruitiness that is somewhat unexpected.
This is a cask that I have been looking forward to bottling for a very long time. Staoisha is the heavily peated spirit produced at Bunnahabhain - a distillery that, despite being on Islay, is better known for its unpeated style.
Bunnahabhain has long been one of my favourite distilleries. My first ever trip to Islay saw me visit the distillery to pick up a leaking cask that was in imminent need of bottling. It was eye opening to see the fragility of the oak holding this valuable liquid; a reminder of the beautiful contradiction between simplicity and complexity that underpins the art of whisky making.
Just three ingredients are the foundation of every malt whisky: water, barley and yeast. Yet this 10 Year Old Staoisha single cask showcases the endless possibilities of flavour that they can create. The heavily peated malt used for producing Staoisha imparts a salty smokiness that is so typical of the Islay region, perfectly complementing the inherent spiciness of the spirit. But what strikes me most about this whisky is an underlying fruitiness that is somewhat unexpected. Over the course of a decade, salty smoke has harmonised with orchard fruits to create a single cask of distinction. It is a delightfully complex example of a simple fact: Bunnahabhain Distillery deserves its place at the top table of scotch whisky.
Staoisha is the heavily peated spirit produced at Bunnahabhain - a distillery that, despite being on Islay, is better known for its unpeated style.
Over the course of a decade, salty smoke has harmonised with orchard fruits to create a single cask of distinction.
The heavily peated malt used for producing Staoisha imparts a salty smokiness that is so typical of the Islay region, perfectly complementing the inherent spiciness of the spirit. But what strikes me most about this whisky is an underlying fruitiness that is somewhat unexpected.