St. Agnes Camborne Sherry Cask Batch No.001 Single Malt Australian Whisky (700ml)

First edition single malts from an historic Australian distiller.

Owned and run by the fifth generation of the Angoves family, St Agnes is Australia’s oldest family-owned continuously operating distillery. They first started laying down casks of new make whisky in 2015, produced via their historic brandy pot stills. The formula here echoes a similar South Australian whisky venture, Yalumba's Smith's Angaston, which also made use of an old brandy still. Just like Yalumba (also family owned), key to Angove's success will be a vast array of casks on hand that have previously contained brandy, apera, rare fortifieds and premium wines. Four beautifully presented first edition single cask expressions are now on offer and the quality is sure to be high. Each is diluted to an optimal ABV: Tawny Cask (51.8%), Sherry Cask (47.6%), XO Brandy Cask (46.3%) and Shiraz Wine Cask (46.2%). Further releases featuring different casks are also in the pipeline and Angove says the team are aiming to release older expressions. For the time being, Richard concludes, "We think these casks have hit a good spot and we’re really happy with them... The whiskies are classically South Australian – rich, full, stylish, smooth, and long."

Notes from the producers... Colour: Orange gold. Entry: Plenty of aromatic spice on entry – Szechuan pepper, fenugreek, nutmeg leading into treacle and dates. Slight hint of very old oak. Finish: Candied dark roasted nuts and bitter chocolate. Drying oak tannins mid-palate easing into a slightly sweet honey cake finish. 47.6% Alc. Vol.