Swedish single malt distiller Mackmyra has announced their latest seasonal release, Vintersol, a port-finished expression. The limited-edition whisky (whose name means “winter sun” in Swedish) is being described by those behind it as “an elegant whisky with a light spiciness and tones of sun-warmed fruit, tropical berries, buttery pear toffee and toasted oak.”
The new release is a collaboration with Quinta Do Vallado, a port producer on the river Corgo in the Douro Valley in Portugal. “We love to collaborate with other unique beverage companies that stand for craftsmanship and innovation,” said Mackmyra’s Eric Bräck in a prepared statement. “The partnership with Quinta de Vallado is no exception. After last year’s sales success of 30-litre whisky casks that we’d saturated with port from Vallado, we are now releasing Vintersol. The finish gives the whisky a distinct oak and berry taste. A whisky that’s perfect now that autumn and winter are coming.”
The new expression was “50 per cent finished for 16 months in Swedish oak casks” that had been used to age the port from Quinta Do Vallado. It was aged, like the distillery’s other whiskies, in Bodås mine, an actual (former) mine where hundreds of rows of whiskey casks are stored 50 meters underground.
In contrast to that dark, cold environment, the distillery calls Vintersol “warm [and] slightly spicy,” and recommends drinking it neat by a fireplace or in mulled wine, a popular wintertime drink in Sweden. Their tasting notes are as follows:
“The scent is spicy and herbaceous with fruity, warm wine-like grape tones with a certain minerality, followed by soft aromas of oaky vanilla, aniseed, ginger, raisins, pear toffee and vanilla. The taste is soft, fruity and spicy, with dried fruit, pears, raisins, ginger and vanilla. The texture is creamy and medium-bodied with an aftertaste that is fruity, spicy and oaky with warm raisins.”
Vintersol is bottled at 46.1% ABV and is available now for around £60, or around $76 USD.
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