Let’s talk about perception, as I feel it often is against us, enthusiasts, when it comes to gifting. Most people near me, relatives, friends and others in my peer group, know I’m into whisky. Which should make us very easy to shop for, surely? When you, like me, are an enthusiast rather than a whisky snob, anything above JW Red level is pretty much welcomed with open arms at casa Malty. Glenfiddich 12? I’ll happily revisit a classic! Glenmorangie 10? Haven’t that one in ages, how considerate! Ooh, a JW black?! Can’t wait to see if I enjoy it as much as I used to…
And yet, people near me who are by no means into the golden nectar seem to be genuinely scared to buy me a bottle of whisky, for a number of reasons. Afraid I might not like it (granted, there’s a possibility, although if you put in even the tiniest of efforts, still unlikely), or I might have had it before (as if that would be a problem), or, a classic, they fear it might not be up to my standards (as if I have any worth upholding) or whatever. So, dearly beloved family and friends and esteemed colleagues the world over, take note: a bottle of whisky, pretty much any bottle of whisky, will almost always outclass a set of new socks. Trust me on this.
But let’s face it: things are different if you’re gifting a whisky from one enthusiast to another. Even if you haven’t got a clue about where one’s preferences lie, there are some cornerstones to build upon. A strong peated whisky might be a bit of a ‘no no’ as there seem to be a good dose of whisky lovers around who can’t stomach the peaty suff. Also, you’ll obviously will be looking to avoid the obvious supermarket clichés mentioned above. So where do you go if you want to make an impression while still keeping an eye on your budget, I ask you? An interesting, young indie release the likes of Douglas Laing’s remarkable malts? Something core range, yet slightly less obvious, or even a bit under the radar like Glen Garioch, Benromach or Speyburn? A higher age stated decent blend? Perhaps one of them upcoming and exciting new English distilleries? All valid choices. But if you want to catch them completely off-guard, and present them with something new, obscure / avant-garde, and wildly exotic, where do you turn to then?
India, apparently.
Indri Trini Three Wood, Indian single malt, 46% ABV, 1st fill bourbon, ex French wine and PX casks, app. €40/£40
Piccadilly distillery. Up until very recently I would have wagered it to be another one of London’s terminally hip craft gin distilleries or something. I couldn’t be further from the truth. Some 5000 miles from the truth, in fact, as Piccadilly distillery is located in Haryana in the Punjab region, some 100 miles from New Delhi. A bit of research tells me that the name was indeed inspired by the buzzing atmosphere of Piccadilly Square from yesteryear, when the company started out as a liquor store and restaurant in the 1950’s, which expanded to a chain of stores and restaurants before stepping into the business of distilling in the 1990’ies. As is quite common with Indian distilleries, their focus was on sugar based products initially, before branching out to malt distilling in 2010. Since then, slowly yet surely, the balance shifted to producing full-fledged malt whisky, phasing out molasses whisky (not abandoning sugar distillation as such, they’ve put that to use to produce rum) and in 2018 they opened their 3d malt distillery. And they are very much in tune with today’s standards, challenges and concerns, producing whisky using 100% sustainable solar energy, relying on indigenous 6-row barley and aiming at low waste, using the draff from the malt to be turned into cattle feed. What’s more, they are taking the stage by storm. With former Amrut master blender Surrinder Kumar on board the distillery is in stable, experienced hands, and with a capacity of 4 million LPA (and a multitude of that for their grain production capacity) they have now become India’s largest independently owned producer of single malt. Not bad for a distillery that wasn’t even mentioned in Ingvar Ronde’s Malt Whisky Yearbook until the 2022 edition…
Nose
It’s immediately rich with quite some depth to it: baking spices, notes of tropical fruit and red fruit (cherries and rich, red grapes) with tropical wood in the mix. There’s something slightly fizzy, a spice like sweetness reminding me of cola cubes, and over time a green, a fresh herbaceous note comes through.
Palate
Again a rich and busy arrival, but there’s something young and youthful in there too. Toffee, coffee and chocolate with spices and roasted nuts to go with it. And then there’s the typical green-spicy note I’ve come to recognize in many Indian malts using 6-row barley. It doesn’t end there: the fizzy and cola cube notes from the nose return on the palate, as well as a barrage of fruits, albeit the dried fruits (dates, raisins) have the upper hand now. Underneath there’s an oaky note, adding a bit of a drying bitterness to it all. So rich and busy, but all delivered in balanced, equal amounts, making this a very tasty dram.
Finish
Dry, oaky and medium long.
Final thoughts
If there’s one thing to take away from this, it would be ‘trust in your local retailer’. Now, I have it pretty easy. There are about 5 good to excellent stores in a 30 minute drive radius from where I live, who can provide me with just about any whisky that tickles my interest, bare one or two exceptions (cough, Springbank, cough). Not only that, some (most, even) of the proprietors of these stores are as much a whisky geek as I am, so often even quick visits will end up in lengthy conversations on recent discoveries, news updates and what not. Best of all, they’ll likely pick up on your interests and won’t hesitate to recommend something new. And that, ladies and gentlemen, is exactly how I stumbled upon today’s whisky. Popping in to one of these stores a while back over lunchbreak, we started chatting and as he had a bottle of this open for customers to try, I dared sipping the tiniest of sips. It was enough to convince me to grab a full bottle back home. For the price - less than €40 (€38 to be precise) – it would be rude not to, because I ‘m pretty certain that this is the best value for money whisky I’ve had in a long time. It’s engaging, rich and potent, with a near perfect balance between spirit and cask. The combo of wine and PX casks could easily have turned into a case of too much, but it’s well in tone and the spirit and the bourbon cask sort of balance out any potential overkill.
Coincidence, serendipity, fortune… call it what you will, but the always excellent and seldom less than spot on Matt McKay from The Dramble reviewed this very whisky last week, so by all means, don’t just take my word for it! But if you do: 85/100 and strongly, highly, wholeheartedly recommended!
Next week: something for the cask strength/indie lover…
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