Follow Us:

Blog

Day 12 - KWM 2024 This Is Not An Advent Calendar - Casks Of Lindores II Bourbon Cask

Posted on December 12, 2024

Day 12 — Casks Of Lindores II Bourbon Cask

By Evan

This is the second time we have featured Lindores Abbey Distillery in a KWM Whisky Calendar. We had the Lindores Abbey Single Malt in the 2022 KWM Whisky Calendar.

Like Bushmills, which we discussed yesterday, Lindores Abbey has a history of distillation. While Lindores Abbey itself has a long history, the distillery does not. It was only just founded in 2017 on the site of the ruins of the former Abbey by owners Drew and Helen Mackenzie Smith.

(Photo from Lindores Abbey Distillery's Facebook Page)

Lindores Abbey is one of only a handful of Scottish distilleries that has the ability to make Single Estate Whisky. This is all thanks to being able to use barley crops grown on fields nearby that were owned by the Abbey, dating back to the 1400s.

Lindores Abbey itself dates back more than two centuries prior to that. It was founded by the Earl of Huntingdon around 1178. The site included a church and monastery and is responsible for the earliest known record of Scotch Whisky: In 1494 King James IV paid Friar Jon Cor of Lindores Abbey: “To Friar John Cor, by order of the King, VIII bolls of Malt, wherewith to make acqua vitae"

The Abbey was ordered to be torn down in 1559, and now, nearly half a millennium later, only the ruins of a few walls and old grave sites remain to show where it once stood.

The site and the distillery residing on it are located in what is considered the Scottish Lowlands near the town of Newburgh, east of Perth and West of St Andrews, near the southern shore of the River Tay. Most of its closest distillery neighbours are also relatively new. Daftmill Distillery is about a 15-minute drive south. Kingsbarns Distillery is a 50-minute drive to the East. Or you could travel to the much older Glenturret Distillery, which is a 50-minute drive to the West.

That is enough of that for now. Let’s taste some whisky! This Lindores bottling is a small batch matured entirely in ex-Bourbon casks, then bottled at 49.4%. We also have a sister batch to this bottling, that was ex-red wine STR casks that is excellent as well.

Lindores Casks Of Lindores II Bourbon Cask – 49.4%

“The second edition of one of the three core Lindores Abbey expressions. This Ex-Bourbon style is maybe the truest expression we've seen from Lindores. It allows more of the distillery's intrinsic character to shine through. Good young whisky from a distillery with so much potential.”

Evan’s Tasting Note

Nose: Vanilla, macadamia nuts, roasted sunflower seeds, apple crumple, banana cream pie, mocha, coffee beans being roasted, and a touch of peanut oil.

Palate: Sweet, but more starch-driven than fruit driven. Impressively creamy with notes of roasted cashews and peanuts, coconut, graham crackers, dehydrated apples, plantain chips, some well integrated oak spice, and a cup of hot chocolate with marshmallows melting on top.

Finish: Creamy and warming, with lingering notes of roasted peanuts and honey.

Comment: I love the texture of this whisky. It is creamy, viscous and mouth coating with plenty of sweet and starchy notes to be had. You can’t get much more ex-Bourbon cask driven than this!

Andrew's Tasting Note

Nose: honeyed, toasty, and malty with white orchard fruits; Green Apple Jolly Ranchers, pear drops, and banana chips; freshly harvested hay, unpasteurized honey, and an intriguing touch of earthy funk; fresh and clean with no rough edges.

Palate: soft, malty, and toasty with building spice; buttercream icing, more unpasteurized honey, and a slight earthy-farmy edge; more apples, pear, banana, and now some crisp citrus too; decadent and peppery spice with more freshly harvested hay, juicy malt, and just a wisp of smoke.

Finish: malty, honeyed, and toasty with fading spices and white fruits; warm and coating, it leaves the mouth watering for more.

Comment: we were originally looking for a cask from Lindores, but after trying this and the STR release, we felt they offered much better value; this may be young, but there is an excellent balance of flavours here; very tasty stuff!

Full Disclosure: we had a tough decision to make with this bottle. We almost put the aforementioned Casks of Lindores Red Wine Cask II version in this year's Not an Advent Calendar instead. This ex-Bourbon version won out because we felt there weren't enough bottlings in that style already.

Do you think we did the right thing, or are you now furious with us? Feel free to let us know, or stow your anger away in the hopes that it will be quenched by tomorrow's dram!

Cheers,
Evan

Playing catch-up on our 2024 This Is Not An Advent Calendar?

You can find the rest of the blog posts here!

This entry was posted in Whisky, Tastings, Whisky Calendars, Distillery, Tastings - Online Tasting, KWM 2024 Not An Advent Calendar Tastings

 

 

Recent Posts
Archives

Categories