Tasting Date: 2021-03-19
Region: Taiwanese Whisky
Type: Single Malt Whisky
Age Statement: NAS (6.9 years old) The cask was filled on 2013-10-02 and has a bottling date of 2020-09-10
Size: 700ml
ABV: 57.8% ABV (variable by cask)
Cask Type: American oak wine barrels that have been toasted and recharred
Distiller: Kavalan Distillery
Location: Yuanshan Township, Yilan County, Taiwan
Bottler: Kavalan Distillery
Purchase Location: Wine and Beyond 11011 51 Ave NW, Edmonton AB T6H 5T1
Purchase Date: March 16th 2021
Cost: $283.59 including GST & Deposit
Tasting Notes From The Kavalan Website:
FLAVOUR: A rich fusion of vanilla and caramelized sugars with dark chocolate on top. Ripe melon and mango together with kiwi and a delicate blend of citrus fruits burst. Pepper is also present in the background waiting to be noticed.
PALATE: The taste ends with clean and complex flavours embodying all that is best in the finest malt whiskies enjoying a long aftertaste.
TASTING: We suggest drinking Kavalan Solist Vinho Barrique Single Cask neat.
Colour: Deep Autumn Gold
TransparentSmoke Review: The front of the bottle reads: Cask W131002009A and the bottle was number 107/179 The cask number starts off by a letter specifying the type of cask (W = Wine, B = Bourbon, S = Sherry). This is followed by nine numbers, where the distilled date is given by the first six (YYMMDD). So this cask was filled on October 2, 2013. The bottle reads 2020-09-10 so it is just less than 7 years old.
Best Single Malt Whisky of the World 2015 by the World Whiskies Awards. Not this specific cask, but this product series.
I enjoyed the whisky, but there is a wine note that over whelms after a couple of drams. Oh and it knocks you on your ass, because I totally forgot it’s 57.8% ABV. Again this was a bottle i shared with my whisky club.
Our Score: 90/100
Bottles on Hand: 
