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1257 Kensington Road NW
1 (403) 283-8000 / atyourservice@kensingtonwinemarket.com
Limit 2 per customer!
Only 1000 bottles are being released of this limited Christmas bottling from Shelter Point. Only the 2nd distillery bottling, it was created by marrying 4 casks of single malt and 1 cask of straight rye whisky. Initially matured in American oak the whisky was finished in "very special" French Oak barrels. The whisky has been bottled at 58.4%, only 90 bottles are coming to Alberta.
Andrew' Tasting Note
Nose: doughy, a hint of orange cheddar, creamy with clotted cream and light strawberry jam; gently toasted oak, a hint of dill and light sugars; becomes spicier with cardamom and cinnamon hearts.
Palate: very rich and fruity, lots of layers, a bit of heat but not as sharp as expected for the strength and age; massive cinnamon hearts, more strawberry jam layered on top of clotted cream on a dry English scone; very honeyed and sugary, the spices take over the back end: candied fennel and Black Licorice Twizzlers; burnt Demerara sugars and oily earthy tones.
Finish: light, fresh, sweet and coating; medium in length it dries as it fades.
Comment: very different from the Inaugural Run, the rye component and French oak have really spiced things up; it is very decadent and smooth, an appropriately Christmassy release.
About Shelter Point (In their own words): "Shelter Point Distillery is, and always will be, an artisanal distillery. Right from the start, the concept has been quality over quantity, coexisting with nature and sourcing locally. This local-first philosophy extends beyond just building materials. In fact, Shelter Point is one of only a handful of distilleries that grow their own barley and distill on the same site. Virtually the only things that aren’t local are our oak barrels, which were sourced from Kentucky bourbon distillers, and the massive copper pot stills which came from Scotland. As far as our methodology goes, well, when you wait five years for a whisky to mature, you can’t help but learn to be patient. As a result, nothing is particularly hurried here. We took our time to get the distillery right, and we’re doing the same with everything else."
750 mlOriginally written by Evan for blog posts relating to our 2019 KWM Whisky Calendar.
Located on a farm halfway between Comox and Campbell River on Vancouver Island in British Columbia. Shelter point has been laying down spirit in casks to eventually become whisky since June of 2011. They grow and harvest much of the barley used from their own farm.
Patrick Evans is a third-generation farmer whose family has been farming in the Comox Valley of British Columbia since the turn of the 20th Century. He is now joined in the business by at least one of his three daughters and his son-in-law Jacob. Patrick purchased the land that is now Shelter Point Farm and Distillery in 2005. Situated along the coast of Vancouver Island where the Oyster River meets the sea, it was formerly a University of British Columbia research farm with a large dairy barn. That dairy barn now serves as cask warehousing and barley storage.
Construction on the distillery began in 2009, with the first spirit running in 2011. As with many other new and small-scale distilleries, white spirits provided some cash flow until the first whiskies were ready for sale. The first single malt, a 5-year-old, was released late in 2016. It was a big hit.
In a somewhat backwards move compared to other craft distilleries that have popped up in the time since Shelter Point began making whisky, the distillery just started releasing their own Shelter Point Gin in the summer of 2019.
Consistent distillation and constant experimentation are to be the name of the game for Shelter Point Distillery. They have been releasing very good single malt whisky since 2016, and the lineup has grown to include limited batches in different styles since then including both wine cask finishes and peated cask finishes among others. There always seems to be something exciting going on at Shelter Point, and we feel very fortunate to get as many of their releases as we do at Kensington Wine Market.
