1988 Cask Strength

Best Southern Hemisphere Whisky

1988 Cask Strength

With a score of 96.5/100, this 25 year old single malt was recently awarded the southern hemisphere whisky of the year in Jim Murray’s 2015 Whisky Bible.

Peat 10% 10%
Fruits 80% 80%
Nuts 80% 80%

“When I first encountered this whisky it would have been a six-year-old and the Dunedin distillery had a very uncertain future. Question marks hung over the quality of the stock, so they were a bit surprised when I assured them that the vast majority of what they were making was of very decent to high standard. Who then would have thought that some two decades on I would be tasting this as one of the most delicate and sophisticated and complex 25-year-olds imaginable? Only the untidy finish shows the distillery’s Achilles: low copper content. On the other hand, it also ensured that it would never be short of character. One of the most poignant and enjoyable whiskies of the year. And memories of the only distillery I ever visited and then took a five minute drive to watch penguins surface from the seas”

– Jim Murray The Whisky Bible 2015

Notes (Jim Murray)

Nose: deft peat forms the most delicate shell imaginable over no less fragile citrus. Soft salt, still a little grist after all these years, background vanilla: almost something akin to a moist lemon drizzle cupcake … with a few atoms of smoke thrown in .. ; Taste: the adroit citrus mingles with the most alluring malt imaginable. The shadow of smoke acts like a siren while the tannins just up their game slightly. Just so well integrated … ; Finish: long, with a feeble spice buzz. Evidence of the shortage of copper from the cask comes through only at the very death;