No grain, no gain, part IV: hybrid grain ftw

To conclude this series, let’s talk about vacations. Not to worry, as I won’t bore you with hilarious, very funny yet  also  ‘you-had-to-be -there’ kind of anecdotes about that time  a storm came up in the middle of the barbecue in Italy or that clumsy waiter in that restaurant we always go to in Amsterdam.

No, what I want to talk to you about, briefly, is about hunting down some of that  local poison whenever you find yourself on vacation,  kicking back, literally and mentally far removed from the everyday burdens of work, life and the universe in general. Generally I tend to disconnect a bit from whisky as well over summer;  nothing to recalibrate the palate like a healthy pause (and giving the old liver some well-deserved time off from liquor) , after all. However, with ‘world whisky’ (still an absolutely clumsy term, but by lack of a better description let’s roll with it) coming along nicely, I do find myself curious to find out if someone, somewhere at whatever destination is picked to spend some time off, is distilling  something palatable and quaffable. It doesn’t need to be whisky per se, obviously (A fine cognac, eau de vie, rum or brandy is not to be sniffed at), and in any case I will be more than keen to at least try some of it when I’m there.

It takes a minimum of preparation (the whiskybase map is a good and useful place to start and often suffices if you’re primarily aiming to  find some locally made whisky) and one simple yet sound principle: if at all possible,  try before you buy. Obviously this applies to many whiskies, not just the ones you might be tempted by when on vacation.

In the best of scenario’s it’ll guide you to some wonderful discoveries – like when I discovered Armorik back in 2016 when we spend our vacation in Brittany. But for every winner, there can be duds as well, as  ‘something local’ can prove to be an absolute trainwreck. I have a bottle at home, claiming to be mezcal, that some friends brought home for me when visiting Mexico, years ago. It is by far the most vile, horrendous thing I ever tasted, and it put me off of mezcal for years. I keep it about because of the souvenir value and the ‘curiosity factor’. And as a running joke, anyone visiting me with a keen interest in spirits is welcome to help themselves to anything in my  cabinet if they manage one drink of this Mexican atrocity.  So setting out to try the local made drink- be it beer, wine, or spirits, are, in a very safe way, always a bit of a discovery and an adventure – some end happy, some less so.

In the Summer of 2023, we spent 10 days at the small isle of Texel (pronounced ‘Tés sell’), just off the north coast of Holland. Although it’s just 20 km across and 8 km wide, it’s still  the biggest of the Dutch ‘Wadden Isles’ and a very popular holiday destination, not in the least for the Dutch themselves. With a local population of roughly 13,000, the many tourists that visit (usually during Spring and Summer) are an important source of income.  I’ve been there a few times as a kid and it’s indeed a place of wonder, as there’s plenty to see and do. Obviously, there’s the seaside, but Texel is gifted with absolutely wonderful dunes, plenty of wildlife (particularly seals, all kinds of sea  and water birds as well as birds of prey),  wonderful hiking and cycling routes and so on. I remember utterly enjoying these vacations as a kid, so  revisiting it one day  with my own children was a bit of a no brainer. The most peculiar thing about these isles (hence the name ‘Wad’ or ‘Wadden’) is that these are in fact tidal flats, meaning the sea between the islands and the Dutch mainland retracts completely  during the low tide, making it possible to go for (guided) walks on the seabed in between tides, or even walk from one island to another. Decent wellingtons strongly recommended.

Finding out that there is indeed a whisky distillery on the island (and 2 liquor stores, and a dedicated whisky bar) as well  wasn’t an ulterior motive  as such, but most certainly a happy coincidence. 

De Lepelaar. 3 yo single grain (2019-2022). Texelse barley and Triticale, Oloroso cask matured, 45% ABV, UCF, NC.

While I didn’t get to visit the distillery during our stay, there were a few reassuring signs that the people behind the distillery are serious and genuine about producing something that’s both good quality, and has a good focus on locality and provenance, working solely with local products and locally grown grain. The name ‘De lepelaar’ (Spoonbill) obviously refers to one of the indigenous birds of Texel. Very much a craft brewery / distillery, their outcome is obviously quite small scale and bottlings tend to be from a wide array of different single cask matured whisky. Each bottle has a very useful and informative bit  of back label, telling you all you want to know: the day it was brewed (not distilled! – that info I tracked down on their website) and who by, the weather conditions (sunny, apparently), the cask type (Oloroso) and size (250 L), the char level (medium), the bottling date and who bottled it, the bottle number etc…

They produce both single grain and single malt whiskies. Peated and unpeated and also a hand smoked malt using seaweed that’s harvested during those low tides. I couldn’t get my hands on the latter, but I did settle on buying a few miniature bottles (each one 10 cl), one of which being a  single grain Triticale whisky.

Now, until buying this bottle, I never heard of triticale grain, so a bit of research was in order.  Turns out, it is a hybrid grain variety, a crossbreed between wheat and rye (combining the Latin names ‘triticum’ – wheat and ‘secale’ – rye)  that was developed in Germany and Scotland at the end of the 19th century with the idea to combine the nutritious value and quality  of wheat with the sturdiness and adaptability of rye. Mostly it is used to feed cattle (both to let them graze on the grasses during summer months as  well as  in the form of harvested and processed into cattle feed for the winter months), and therefore we rarely see it used for human consumption,. Possibly because it seems to have inherited all the difficulties rye whisky tends to have as well – it’s sticky and difficult to ferment. Overall in the Netherlands, some 4000 Ha (some 10,000 acres) is grown and apparently enough of it is being produced on Texel to throw some of it in a washback and then distil it…

Nose

Ok, this is quite the surprise. This does not nose like a very young whisky, nor does it come across as a grain whisky. It’s very sweet and very fruity – honey, vanilla, caramel and  bags and bags of sweet pears, going into pear syrup and pear drops. Given time the graininess does pop up as hints of banana and shortbread appear, notes that are becoming gradually more dominant, even.

Palate

A very gentle fizz, and again quite some sweetness, driven by orchard fruit. Hints of spices, and – surprising given that this is 3 years young – a woody – oaky note, which transfers on to a dry mouthfeel.

Finish

Short, mouth clinging and increasingly drying – a dryness which in fact lingers on for quite a bit.

Final thoughts

Yes it’s youthful, but never ever would I have put this down as a 3 year old. It might be down to a good cask, or the combination of different grain varieties (barley and triticale – 3 for the price of 2) in the mash bill, but at no point does this act like a baby grain whisky. That said, there’s no denying this is also somewhat ‘generic’ and could do with  a more develloped  character – so I’m really hoping they will also rely on refill bourbon casks and aim for something a bit older. But these are minor issues, really, because after all, what we’ve got here is an absolutely pleasant, no nonsense,  integrity-presented whisky from a tiny little isle in the North Sea with enough quality and flavour to beat the odds. Should’ve bought a full sized bottle… 82/100

And with that: roll on autumn. With the 5 year milestone around the corner, I’ll be rising to the occasion by covering a wide range of ‘folly’ whiskies in the weeks to come – from closed distilleries to unobtanium Japanese malts to 30+ years old Islay single malts and – quite possibly – everything in between. Let’s get decadent!