Auchentoshan American Oak (40.0%): American Oak is the entry level release from Auchentoshan Distillery portfolio which replaced the Classic back in 2014... It is triple distilled like all the other Auchentoshan bottlings, does not carry an age statement and matured exclusively in ex-bourbon casks. That's about it... A pretty straight forward whisky without a fancy backstory. Let's cut to the chase then...
Color: Yellow gold, oaked Chardonnay color with thin but slow legs.
Nose: Stainless steel water bottles, watered down lemon juice and honey rock candy. Malt, honey syrup and orange twist. Damp soil and curd. Very subtle, quiet but pleasing.
Palate: Thin but oily texture. Unsalted butter, cinnamon dusting and toasted oak. Actually I am getting distinct oak notes on the palate like an American craft distillery product. I know that they didn't use any virgin oak barrels but I wonder if they did use some small size barrels. Spiciness of a young rye whiskey and oakiness of small size cask matured spirit. Eucalyptus, mint leaves, cloves and vanilla.
Finish: Medium to short with cinnamon, cloves and oak staves. Dry...
Overall: Well, it is advertised as an entry level single malt, it is priced like one and tastes like one. So, no foul play there but I am little bothered by the overall dominance of sharp cask driven notes on the palate. Too much oak and spice for such a young whisky... Lucky for them that there aren't many other single malts in the same price category, the competition is not that tough. But it is still a hard-sell if you consider other whiskies on the shelves that are not single malts... At the end I would probably reach for a blend in the same price range instead but if you are one of those anti-blend drinkers and insist for a single malt, sure... You won't be disappointed. Thanks to Sam Knash Green for the sample.
Price: $33
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