Another cracking release from The Lakes Distillery, Whiskymaker’s Reserve No. 2 is simply excellent.
“HOLISTIC WHISKY MAKING”
At The Lakes Distillery, in the beautiful Cumbrian countryside, they don’t just produce whisky, they practice “holistic whisky making”. Don’t get hung up on the terms, the process itself is actually quite interesting.
Basically, it means The Lake’s resident “Whiskymaker” is present at all points through the whisky making process. Their current Whisky maker (which s the equivalent of the Master Distiller) is Dhavall Gandhi, and he is making some pretty great drams.
The goal at The Lakes Distillery is to capture the beauty of the lakes themselves. And with this approach, they seem to be doing that quite well.
WHISKYMAKER’S RESERVE
This is the second release in the Whiskymaker’s Reserve, a collection of drams hand selected by Gandhi. But it goes beyond just that. The collection has been created to showcase exactly what they can do at The Lakes Distillery.
With Whiskymaker’s Reserve, they have turned whisky making into something of an art form, taking cues from nature and art to build a collection that is an exploration of blending and maturation. They recognise that they’re up against some big names, with much longer histories in the whisky making game. Whiskymaker’s Reserve is their answer to that challenge.
TASTING NOTES FOR WHISKYMAKER’S RESERVE NO. 2 SINGLE MALT ENGLISH WHISKY
This malt has been matured in Pedro Ximenez, red wine and bourbon casks.
The nose begins with tart notes of summer berries, sweet caramel and oak wood. The sherry spice comes through really well and adds a layer of depth. Dried fruits, raisins, apricots and sultanas give it a chewy texture from the get go.
The palate is luxurious. It is full of dried fruits, with lots of sherry spice and oak wood. There is a certain earthy quality to the sherry that really makes it come alive. The body is smooth and mellow. This contrasts wonderfully with the slight sharpness of the red wine, which is elegant.
The finish is bold and lingers on sherry and caramel.
This is another brilliant release from The Lakes. We can’t wait to see what they do next with the Whiskymaker’s Reserve.
What do you think of the Whiskymaker’s Reserve collection? Let us know in the comments!