American

Whiskey Review: Westland 8th Annual Peat Week Festival American Single Malt Whiskey

We review the eighth installment in Westland's Peat Week series, and the last that will use Scottish peated malt before the distillery switches over to Washington malt and peat.

OVERALL RATING

8
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8th Annual Peat Week Festival American Single Malt Whiskey

Tasting Notes

About:

86 months maturation in new American oak, 54.5% ABV, mash bill: 100% malted Scottish barley (Baird’s heavily peated malt), SRP $99.99/ 750ml bottle. Seattle, Washington.
Appearance:
The Westland Peat Week Eight is brown-gold of moderate intensity.
Nose:
There are moderate notes of amber musk, roasted carrots, raw flour, and vanilla. This leads to appetizing aromas of yellow peaches and graphite with a light hint of clove and brewer’s yeast.
Palate:
This tastes predominantly of bananas with a moderate viscosity. In the mouth, the vanilla flavor carries through and shows hints of dried apples. The banana note carries through the finish along with yellow apples. There’s a moderate sweetness and peatiness not on the finish under the fruit. In comparison to the fourth, fifth, and sixth releases, this is the sweetest of the lineup. It’s very pleasant with a gentle burn from the alcohol. A splash of water helps downplay the sweetness and bring forward the peaty aromas.
Finish:
Comments:
The Westland 8th Annual Peat Week Festival American Single Malt Whiskey was a very successful grand finale and stood out from the line up of prior year’s Peat Week releases. Their success with the Scottish peated malt bodes well for the ambitious project of crafting a whiskey from the bog up. Best of luck locating a bottle; only 221 were made and they were originally sold direct at the distillery.

Editor’s Note: This whiskey was either bought as a sample by The Whiskey Wash or provided to us as a review sample by the party behind it. Per our editorial policies, this in no way influenced the outcome of this review.

Suzanne Bayard

Suzanne Bayard struck out to the West Coast with her now husband almost a decade ago to explore the intersection of wine and policy in its world-class wine regions. She manages a Portland, OR bottle shop by day as the wine buyer and newsletter editor. She is also the Director of the Deep Roots Coalition, an organization of 30 Willamette Valley wineries that educate on and promote dry farming and sustainable practices. She joined the Whiskey Wash to explore two other passions: writing and whiskey.

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