1257 Kensington Road NW
1 (403) 283-8000 / atyourservice@kensingtonwinemarket.com
$111.99
Our 3rd KWM exclusive cask of Millstone is a single malt distilled in 2016, and matured in an Oloroso sherry hogshead. The whisky has been bottled after 7 years at 52.3%. We're big fans of Millstone and its impresario Patrick Van Zuidam. We've been looking for an opportunity to select and bottle a cask of sherry-matured Millstone single malt, and are thrilled that this one is finally here!
The artwork on the label is from a painting of the store Andrew's wife Jen had made for him several years ago... it is our old entrance, pre-"the infamous Dodge Ram incident!"
700 mlAndrew's Tasting Note
Nose: rich, sherried, and nutty; dried dark fruits: raisins, dates, and figs; jujubes, candied ginger, and Aussie licorice; dark milk chocolate, Fruit Roll-Ups, soft leather, and building spice; beer nuts and Nerds.
Palate: rich, sherried, and nutty with a luscious mouthfeel; starting with the dried dark fruits again we have fig jam, Glosset Raisins, and grilled dates; again with the Fruit Roll-Ups, Nerds, and candied ginger; dark milk chocolate, soft new leather, cigar tobacco, and festive spices: ginger, cinnamon, cardamom, and licorice root; there is also a touch of earthy funk, like a cellar aged fruit cake.
Finish: rich, spicy, and sherried, with loads of dark and candied fruits; elegant and coating with soft leather and tobacco.
Comment: there is a lovely synergy here between the nose, palate, and finish; I don't often find that in young sherried malts... but this is Millstone whisky, and they fill and bottle some of the best sherry casks in the industry; there is a complexity, and elegance here that belies its age; this is old school style sherry, and it is lovely.
The Zuidam Distillery was founded in 1975 in Baarle Nassau, which lies in the southern Netherlands near the border it shares with Belgium The Founder, Fred van Zuidam, had accumulated two decades of previous experience in spirits production before deciding to make a go of it on his own. Under his care, the distillery started by making a line of premium liqueurs using natural ingredients, from grain to fruit to herbs and spices used. This methodology continues to this day, as Zuidam spirits are made with no artificial colouring or flavouring. This goes for all of their products, be it their Cassis Liqueur (which is delicious by the way), Apple Flavoured Gin, Dutch Courage Old Tom Gin, Premium Genever, or Single Malt Whiskies.
Zuidam’s first experiments in whisky-making started in 1994, and regular whisky production commenced four years later in 1998. Even then, the Zuidam family showed patience, not releasing their first single malt whisky commercially until 2007. The first bottling was a 5 year old. It was also the first release to use the Millstone name, which was a reference to the use of Dutch Windmills to stone-mill the malted barley. Nowadays, the use of windmills is no longer enough to supply all of the grist needed.
Fred’s son Patrick van Zuidam is now in charge of whisky and spirit production at the family distillery, and under his influence, the distillery’s line of whisky has stretched into a variety of different styles and grains, including Rye and three and five-grain blends. Further experiments in growing their own barley are ongoing with the stated goal to be self-sustainable when it comes to grain soon.