Belgrove Rye Whisky Cask Strength Heartwood "Any Port on a Storm"

Nose: Lively, with a smoky essence laced with minerals and ash, baking spices, and a hint of mint. An earthy, tobacco-like scent is present along with stone fruits – imagine dried apricots simmered with cinnamon and clove. The spirit's strength is apparent (a noticeable "nip") and the aroma is quite reserved when neat. Adding a little water opens up the sweet fragrances and slightly softens the spice. After the whisky rests, some pineapple emerges, and there's a powerful scent that brings to mind mezcal or tequila. Palate: A fruity and spicy initial taste, featuring sweet grain notes. The spices become prominent as it develops, with detectable caraway, dill seed, ground ginger, and allspice. It has a character like toasted rye bread and once again that familiar mezcal impression often found in Belgrove rye whisky. The mouthfeel is rich and slick, possessing a satisfying weight. There's a bit of warmth, which is expected considering the high proof. Finish: Extended. Warm spices and grain, fading into an earthy finish with traces of honey and pineapple. An outstanding whisky that, like all Belgrove ryes, clearly identifies as rye spirit but is distinct from others. It shares the same light, crisp quality as the standard 100% rye bottling (at 44-46% ABV), but exhibits greater body and complexity. Belgrove Distillery operates on a small, highly artisanal scale. They produce in limited batches, and expressions like this are not widely available (for more insights into the distillery and a certain individual, refer to my review of “Belgrove Rye Whisky”). A particular method is employed in crafting these whiskies, involving not fully drying the malted rye before grinding. This is feasible due to the small-batch, limited production. Grinding is performed with an old hand-cranked meat grinder mounted on a table (quite something!). The moist grain is fermented openly to interact with wild yeasts (though commercial yeast is also added). Fermentation proceeds into the secondary lacto-bacillus stage before stopping naturally. This technique reduces alcohol content but maximizes flavor complexity. The wash is then distilled in a homemade direct-fired pot still, heated by waste cooking oil from a local fish and chip establishment. This particular batch was aged in a cask sourced from Heartwood, an independent bottler. The cask was initially an ex-port barrel, later used for maturing Heartwood's “Any Port in a Storm” blended malt whisky. The final product was bottled on December 23, 2019. This was the second of five Belgrove whiskies sampled at the 2021 Sydney Whisky Show, marking my 21st tasting of the day. “Very Good”: 86/100 (4 stars). P.S. Please note two minor corrections to the listed details: It should be “Any Port in a Storm”, not “Any Port on a Storm”, and the distillery is situated in Kempton, not Kimpton. Blame autocorrect! 😡