Starward Cognac Cask

Taking a short break from distillery-focused explorations to open this limited edition. First, two matters to discuss. This spirit is a limited edition made available through Australia's monthly whisky subscription service. I've voiced my dissatisfaction with them previously for being rather poor and promoting exclusive releases that don't justify the hype or the extra shipping cost. I've sampled a few from this service before, and purchased one that even impressed a friend. Having recently greatly enjoyed cognac cask finishing, I was drawn to this one. Second, the distillery. *Sigh* This distillery is the primary producer and distributor of Australian Whisky. They've recently gained significant attention for numerous awards and the title of world's best distillery. However, my experience with the few I've tried so far has been just average. I've also taken issue with their numerous experimental barrels that they then market as special and exclusive. But again, cognac casks! So, the spirit: here we have standard distillate from the distillery matured in red wine barrels, which is their typical style, followed by a secondary maturation (~1 year) in Limousin Oak French Cognac casks. I implore the spirits authorities that this is worthy of such premium wood… Nose: A rich arrival with a slight ethanol burn. Dense with red berries, apples, and pears, and perhaps stone fruit. It evokes an orchard in autumn. The reason for autumn? There's a subtle warming wood and cinnamon spice. To complete the profile, the aroma is enrobed in a light vanilla caramel. It's potent, bold, and substantial. Not subtle, but enjoyable nonetheless. Over time, it becomes ever so slightly tart, and after a few sips, perhaps a hint of apple cider vinegar. Palate: Thick and creamy, moving towards oily. The oak is the most dominant note immediately, imparting a buttery quality that delivers a rather heavy dose of wood spice. Beneath the spice, there's a touch of honey sweetness, nutty chocolate, and a ginger to chili heat. Quite straightforward initially, and I will need to revisit with some water… Finish: Medium-long. Abundant oak with some sweetness and a hint of coconut cream. It vaguely reminds me of a rum. A few drops of water immediately cut through the slight ethanol prickle on the nose, and the wood spice softens, allowing the fruity caramel to truly shine. The slightly tart apple cider note has faded. That note is interesting as it's similar to one I detected in a cognac-finished spirit I sampled previously. I believe it's a characteristic of cognac. Water transforms the heavy spice, truly unraveling it. The palate becomes much more velvety and creamy; the spices extend to nutmeg, cinnamon, and a tannic tartness. Excellent. The nutty chocolate flavor is very much like a chocolate-dipped gingerbread cookie. There might also be a faint citrus zest, like orange. This marks my fourth tasting of a spirit from this distillery, and thus far, they've all been around average, not matching the acclaim. This one, however, is the best yet. It's not as delicate as I had hoped, but it's packed with flavors. I believe a little air in the bottle and some time to rest will be beneficial here. Both the subscription service and the distillery gain some much-needed points in my assessment. [Pictured here with a small rock from the Bunger Hills of Antarctica. This is a very high-temperature metamorphic granulite (colored red by iron weathering) originating 1.7 billion years ago, intruded by a tiny black basalt dike from 1.14 billion years ago.] Distillery spirit tasting #131 *If you've read this far, you get to help decide my post-Christmas tasting direction: Do I delve into 11 bottles from a Highland distillery and some rather special ones, or explore seven bottles from a London-based distillery?* **Also, app users, could you enable editing for user-added bottles? This is not a Cognac cask; it's a red wine cask with Cognac finishing. Precision matters.**

Nose: A rich aroma with a strong wine character (red wine casks are very evident). Ethanol, malt, orchard fruit, and a bit of vanilla. The aroma strongly suggests “Starward!” as their whiskies always have a red-wine cask presence, and it's not subtle. Palate: Served neat, it's briefly sweet on the palate with apples, pears, and a little vanilla, but then strong tannins from the oak casks and red wine dominate and overshadow the more delicate elements. This aggressive combination then projects a loud, discordant mix of pepper, chili, and ginger spice that nearly obliterates any hint of subtlety or finesse. This drinks much stronger than the 48% alcohol content would imply – it's like an uncontrolled cask strength malt. The texture is substantial and somewhat oily. It's significantly better with added water. Finish: Medium length. Oaky and bittersweet, with wine and tannin in conflict until the end. This whisky was a limited release bottled by Starward for The Whisky Club in Australia. I've finally worked through my tasting backlog and found this today in my “to-do” sample box. It was given to me some time ago by a friend. It's a potent dram and quite boisterous when neat, so after the initial sips, I added some water (about a teaspoon and a half to 25ml). This, along with some resting time in the glass, made a considerable improvement by calming the ethanol intensity in the aroma and allowing more subtle wood spice notes to emerge, along with some stewed fruits. On the palate, it was also much more manageable with water, the arrival flowing into the later palate more smoothly. The initial orchard fruits persist longer, and the strong spices are notably subdued. I detected a note of apple cider in both the aroma and palate once water was added, and the texture became creamy. Water is not just recommended for this, it's essential. Overall, a pleasant whisky, though not my preferred style. Like all the Starwards I've tasted so far, it was interesting to sample, but I have no interest in owning a bottle. Their spirit is clean and well-made (the new-make is pleasant but not the best I've tasted), but there's something about this distillery that just doesn't resonate with me. I wish they would move past their fondness for ex-red-wine barrels and their fixation on finishing casks and instead mature in heavily charred ex-bourbon casks. I believe that would work wonders for the spirit. “Above Average”: 82/100 (3.25 stars)