Annandale Rascally Liquor Peated New Make Spirit 63.5%
From the distillery website:
What is Rascally Liquor? An unaged clear malt spirit so splendid, distinctive and rascally, we kept it back from the cask and wrestled it straight into a bottle.
Pure and clear, it's made with just three ingredients - peated malt, yeast and water, and distilled in Annandale's twin copper pot stills, producing a smoky young spirit with real character. Sip on its own or muddle into your favourite smoky whisky cocktail for a contemporary twist.
Situated in the heart of Dumfries-shire, the story behind the reopening of Annandale distillery after almost 90 years is a fascinating one, as is the journey they took in developing a specific identity for the new distillery spirit. In doing so, they wanted to challenge the typical notions of the light, fruity Lowland whisky character and bring back some of the flavours of bygone days when peat kilning was in use in the region.
The name 'Rascally liquor' apparently comes from a letter from Robert Burns in 1788 to a friend, where he described local whisky as "...a most rascally liquor, and by consequence only drank by the most rascally part of the inhabitants"
Tasting Notes:
Appearance: Colourless, oily and viscous forming a thin line which slowly beads before eventually falling as slow, thin legs.
Nose: Dry peat smoke, honey, orchard fruits.
Palate: Woody peat smoke, white pepper, green apple, hints of tropical fruit, vanilla, oak, caramel sweetness. Water brings out more of the sweetness, tropical fruit, green apple and oak.
Finish: Lingering, slightly herbal smoke, turns a little oaky.
Summary: I would always recommend trying to get hold of new make spirit from a distillery as it will often give you a real insight into the distillery DNA, and how that carries through the maturation process. Annandale produce both peated and unpeated whisky, and the opportunity to see how these new make spirits compare was too good to miss.
Whilst the unpeated version is heavy on malt and citrus notes, particularly orange, the use of 45ppm peated malt in this process has produced something pleasantly smoky without losing much of the spirit character. The mouthfeel is less creamy and malty, the tropical fruit notes and caramel are more evident whilst the peat smoke is gentle and adds a slightly herbal element.
I usually tend towards the peatier end of the spectrum, however in this case I prefer the unpeated new make. That’s not to say this is a lesser spirit, but there is something about the creaminess of the unpeated that makes it more of a memorable experience. It will, however, be very interesting to see how this interacts with different casks during the maturation period.
If you would like more information on this spirit, or the fascinating history and ethos behind the Annandale distillery, I would strongly recommend a visit to the company website.
