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Day 9 - KWM 2024 This Is Not An Advent Calendar - Millstone 25 Year Oloroso Canada Cask

Posted on December 9, 2024

*NOTE: If you have one of our Not An Advent Calendar Tastings set or kit and did not receive the email for the Day 1-5 Virtual Recap tasting that took place on Thursday, December 5th, please let me know.

Day 9 — Millstone 25 Year Oloroso Canada Cask

By Evan

We are going old and bold for today’s sample dram. For Day Nine, we will be tasting a single cask 25-Year-Old Single Malt Whisky from Millstone Whisky / Zuidam Distillery, which was aged in an ex-Oloroso Sherry cask.

If you are no yet familiar with Millstone, we should probably start by telling you that this here ain’t no Scotch Whisky. It is a Single Malt Whisky made in the Netherlands. We are going Dutch for this dram!

The Zuidam Distillery was founded in 1975 in Baarle-Nassau, which lies in the southern Netherlands, near the border the Dutch country 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 and Rye Whiskies. Millstone whiskies, and beyond that with the Zuidam line of spirits and liqueurs are numerous, so they can be hard to keep track of.

(Diagram that breaks down the whisky making process. Found on Zuidam Distillery's Website.)

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 the grist needed.

Fred’s son Patrick van Zuidam is now in charge of whisky and spirit production at the family distillery. Under his guidance, the distillery’s line of whisky has stretched into a variety of styles and grains, including Rye as well as three-grain and five-grain blends. On the single malt whisky side of things, the distillery uses long fermentation times as well as a Belgian Brewer’s Yeast for the fermentation itself. Patrick has a deep fondness for good quality sherry casks and has invested serious amounts of time and money to obtain them.

This investment is paying off in a big way for sherry-influenced whisky lovers. I believe Millstone currently ranks at the top tier of sherried whisky producers, standing shoulder to shoulder with the likes of Gordon & MacPhail and Signatory Vintage/Edradour.

If enjoyed our 2023 KWM Whisky Calendar UBER EDITION last year, you may remember there being a 25-year-old Millstone single malt that was bottled by That Boutique-Y Whisky Company. It was featured on Day Four of that calendar and was a decadently sherried beast of a whisky. It ended up being my second favourite from that Calendar.

That is some very high praise, but well-deserved in my opinion. Shall we give today’s dram a try and see if my feelings are justified?

Millstone 1996–25 Year Oloroso Canada Cask — 44.9%

This cask of sherry matured Millstone, is one of the earliest casks of single malt laid down by the Dutch distillery. Bottled after 25 years in Oloroso whisky at 44.9%, exclusively for Canada, by Craftwork Spirits. 91pts Whisky Fun

Evan’s Tasting Note

Nose: You could almost drown in the drenched, syrupy goodness wafting out of the glass on this one. Full of raisins, dates, stewed plums, black forest cake, pralines, chocolate Turtles, reduced raspberry balsamic vinegar, and a damp and mossy forest floor full of fallen pine needles.

Palate: It is absolutely nuts. And It’s chocolate. And maple syrup, 20+ year old tawny port mixed with Vin Santo, plus raisins, dates, plums, cassis, brandied cherries, Amaretto liqueur, Nutella spread, and that last sip of a good cup of coffee.

Finish: In a word: lengthy. Plenty of fruit leather and nuttiness that doesn’t just stick around; it moves in. If I don’t remember to brush my teeth tonight, I may still be tasting this when I wake up in the morning.

Comment: There is a density to sherried Millstone single malt that is nearly unrivalled. This is a boozy Christmas cake that is more booze than cake, and all the better for it.

Andrew's Tasting Note

Nose: life is like a box of chocolates... it calls to mind a high-end department store where Italian leather shoes and the finest handmade chocolates are sold side by side; very nutty, Armagnac, and stewed fruits to boot; earthy with fruity tobacco, and Oloroso sherry.

Palate: rich, nutty, and fruity with loads of chocolate; treacle, maple syrup, and more Oloroso sherry; rich spices: cinnamon, cardamom, anise, and clove; fruity tobacco, candied nuts, and smooth new leather; dried dark fruits and Jujubes.

Finish: long, warming, and sherried; with more dark fruits, chocolate, leather, and tobacco.

Comment: that this is another fine old bottling of sherried Millstone shouldn't come as a surprise to anyone in the know; Patrick Van Zuidam's whiskies really do deserve more demand and attention than they get, and this is a fine example of why that should be the case; old school sherry, the kind we rarely see anymore... though I have to say I think I slightly prefer the Boutique-y 10th Birthday 25-year-old to this one... we'll need to put them head to head at some point to be sure, though!

What a Dram! 25-Year-Old Millstone Single Malt Whisky certainly isn’t inexpensive, though. If you are looking for an alternative great sherried dram at a reasonable price, you should check out our own Millstone Single Cask!

Cheers,
Evan