American Single Malt is barely simply now on the verge of turning into an official class, however Kentucky’s New Riff has already begun making use of their trademark tinkering to the type. And so they’ve been doing it for some time, apparently. The distillery isn’t any stranger to distinctive malted whiskeys, delivering spectacular bourbon and rye expressions over time, however they’ve additionally been working quietly behind the scenes on 100% malted barley choices like this new Bitter Mash Single Malt. New Riff whiskeys are sometimes considerably advanced affairs, however this one might take the cake. Per New Riff:
“On one hand, it’s fully completely different from every thing else we’ve ever made,” stated co-founder Jay Erisman. “However on the opposite, it’s fully trustworthy to our mission to be a ‘new riff on an outdated custom,’ utilizing the bitter mash routine to discover one other basic whiskey custom.” Anticipated to be launched yearly, the precise mix of New Riff Bitter Mash Single Malt will change barely from 12 months to 12 months. The 2023 launch, comprised of 5 of the six recipes, consists of whiskey distilled from 2014-2016, starting from 7 to eight years outdated.
Six completely different mashbills have been created utilizing a spread of various malted barleys and quite a lot of cask varieties, Erisman stated, that are vatted collectively into one harmonious expression. The mashbills embody 4 whiskeys made with 100% barley varietals—Golden Promise, Maris Otter, Chevallier heirloom barley, and Scottish peated barley malt—in addition to two beer-inspired mashbills primarily based on basic Barleywine and Belgian Quadrupel recipes. Every provides a definite taste profile. The malt whiskeys have matured in quite a lot of barrels, starting from new charred oak, de-charred toasted oak, pink wine casks, Portuguese brandy casks, basic sherried oak casks, and extra.
Bought all that? I’m undecided I do both.
Initially, the nostril is burley with oak and barrel char, however because it opens, all these cask finishes come into play with a mixture of sherry notes – dry and oxidized – alongside golden raisin, baked apricot, drying flowers, and a little bit of outdated floorboards all accented by a mild lacing of cigar smoke. The palate kicks off with a candy mélange of malts: smoked, sherried, chocolaty, and even some that, as marketed, evoke a heavy Belgian beer type. It’s actually a bit arduous to pin the flavors down with out dipping again into the glass repeatedly. Some welcome coherence arrives on the midpalate which provides up wine-forward notes of currants, grilled plums, and toasted almond earlier than transitioning to chocolate sauce and baked stone fruit on a heat, peppery, and peat-kissed end.
Outdoors of their single barrels, New Riff has but to launch something over 100 proof (appropriate me if I’m incorrect), however they selected to bottle this new single malt at cask energy whereas “kindly” suggesting on their web site so as to add a splash of water. I adopted their steering and located the suggestion to be required studying as even a small quantity of water rounded a number of the rougher edges and introduced much more symmetry to this whiskey’s wide-ranging taste palate.
113.8 proof.
B+ / $70 / newriffdistilling.com
New Riff Bitter Mash Single Malt Whiskey
$70
