Category Archives: Penderyn

Penderyn, Summertime, Takin' It Easy

Two Penderyn Expressions – Sherry & Madeira Wood

This is the Sherry Wood bottling
This is the Madeira Wood bottling

Wales – both whiskies are bottled at 46%ABV – Sherry Wood can be had for £36 | $70 | €41 – Madeira Wood can be had for £36 | $70 | €41

Shame on me.

I’ve had these two whiskies reviewed for sometime now and, for the life of me, I could not locate any of my notes.  I consider myself fairly organized and to misplace my notes pissed me off…  just a bit.

Luckily, they have now been found so I can stop kicking myself in the arse.

Also lucky for me (and for you), posting the review of these two whiskies right now is perfect for the season as I found them to be fairly light and refreshing.

They’re a bit odd as well but hey, that’s a good thing.  I quite enjoy trying whiskies from different regions and countries as they help to challenge what you think you know about whisky on the whole.  Look around the the world-wide-interwebs and you will find reviews of Penderyn that run the gamut.  From delicious to not-so-delicious.  You’ll find it all.

What I ask of you is that you go into to this (or any whisk(e)y that is new to you) with an open mind.  There are a lot of bourbon people out there who hate Scotch whisky; and vice versa.  We all need to get out of our comfort zone and try to learn a bit.  The following is my blinders-off-assessment of these two Penderyn whiskies and I’m glad that I went in without any preconceived notions as, in the end, I quite liked these whiskies.

Penderyn Madeira Wood

On the nose — Wafts of juniper; fresh & bright.  Grinning a grin and stinking of gin.

Light with limes and white flesh peaches soaking in fine muscato wine.

Burning leaves in the springtime – I imagine myself as a little boy using a magnifying glass to light said leaves (this is not smoky in anyway, mind you.  The aroma is just bringing back memories).

Far off scents of the railroad.

On the mouth — Light and almost grain-like in flavor (like an aged grain whisky).

Very one-sided with its light quality and bright, sweet citrus notes (think lime leaf and fizzy like seltzer with lime).

Thinnish in mouthfeel.

A touch of honey.  Actually, a good amount of honey as we near the finish line.

Finish — Lots of cereal notes – very malty all of the sudden.  Honey covered muesli.

In sum —  A summery whisky that can be applied to any social situation.  I can see a lot of blend drinkers liking this one.  Light, sweet, fairly balanced and, simply approachable by anybody.

Penderyn Sherry Wood

On the nose — Similar to the lightness I got on the Madeira Penderyn except there’s no juniper.

It’s all on dark chocolate covered, raspberry nougat chews (if you can imagine a light version of that).

Rain puddles and sidewalk chalk.

It’s got a bite-y little nose on it too; prickily-dickily-doo.

Big-ass bails of hay.

On the mouth — Viscous mouthfeel with a very sherried influence.

Not ooey, sweet and cloying like some sherry bombs; fairly well integrated.

Fruit marmalades (grapefruit, orange and lime).

Thick and chewy but oh so light and brisk in flavor.

Finish — Slightly nutty and tannic (think halved walnuts).  Faint notes of rye (?).

In sum —  More complex than the Madeira version yet still light and easy going.  Like the Madeira, I can picture myself pouring this in a very social setting where both whisky snobs and whisky noobs are hanging out – a easy pleaser.

Special thanks to Luke at Penderyn for the samples!

Penderyn

Penderyn Peated Welsh Whisky

Wales — 46%ABV — $70 | £36 | €55

Penderyn is a new distillery in Wales.

Sometimes I feel like a dumb American.  I’m feeling like one right now as I can not tell you anything about Wales; nothing.  All of the geographical and societal information regarding Wales that I learned way back in high school went through my brain like a sieve.  I hope the Welsh people do not take this personally.

“Every time I learn something new it pushes some old stuff out” – Homer J. Simpson

I decided to learn a bit about Wales before I posted about this whisky and was lucky enough to find this great informational video from Ali G:

I hope this video helped you as much as it helped me!

On the nose — Quite light on the nose – difficult to pull out the scents.

Let’s give it a few minutes to open up here…

Fruity and flowery on the nose (but as if you’re downwind of the orchard and flower garden).

Still, a very light & restrained nose.

A slight smokiness is revealed here along with some flinty & grassy notes and touch salty.

On the mouth — Surprise!  This is a much bigger whisky than I would have expected from the hints the nose was giving me!

Very youthful with tones of juniper and even a bit of sage.

The peat here is very understated, practically minute.

Barbecue sauce.

Finish — A sea breeze finish that lasts a good while.

The peat becomes more clear here and there’s a peppery quality to it.

In sum — This is the off beat, odd duck, alt-country indy rocker of whiskies.  Don’t go into this thinking you’re going to get a Scotch-type like whisky.  Don’t go into this thinking that, if the label says it’s peated that you’re going to get a smokey whisky.  This is a whisky all its own.  That aside, and as much as I enjoy a young whisky, I think this would have gotten some benefit from a bit more time in a cask (or perhaps to another type of cask to add other elements).

Special thanks goes out to Luke O’Mahony for the sample!!