Image copyright by Last Straw Distillery Corp. Used with Permission.
| ABV |
49% |
|---|---|
| Aging |
Virgin Charred Oak Casks |
| Recipe |
100% Malted Corn |
| Distiller | Last Straw (Vaughan, Ontario) |
Now here is something unique - a 100% malted (sprouted) corn whisky. I’ve never seen this in a whisky before - it is named after the name of the grain from the supplier - “sCorn” for sprouted corn. When I visited the distillery nearly three years ago, I tasted a few whiskies from the cask and one in particular stood out to me - this one. The distillate was just amazing. Now, here we are and the distillate is a whisky. The stuff is made just the same as their rye - mashed the same, same yeast strain - but very different whiskies. This whisky is currently available online.
There is another cask of this stuff currently maturing for a longer period, and in 2020 there are some plans to lay down a few additional casks.
Review (2019)
Batch: N/A
Bottling Code: N/A
Bottling Date: 2019
The nose is welcoming – tannic oak, barrel char, vanilla, custard, eggnog, pear, light smoke, clove, and a nice hit of boiled grainy notes (think porridge). It’s a tale of contrasts between the sweet creaminess and the spicy oak, and it’s bridged (nicely) by grainy notes. The palate is nice and creamy, and there is a really nice oaky, sweet kick at the end. Nice oiliness. Like the nose, it walks the balance between creaminess and tannins pretty well for a relatively young whisky. The finish has baking spice, vanilla, toasting hazlenuts, and apple. As all whiskies should, it drinks better slow than fast.
It is quite unlike other 100% corn whiskies I’ve had – it’s quite dynamic, not flat like some. The creamy and spicy notes really do a nice trick.
The empty glass the next morning is a must. It just oozes oaky, grainy, sweet aromas.
This is very nice – I liked their rye, too – both different, both good. I think both are nice now, but will start to get really good with more time in the barrel – so watch this space!
Recommended (82% of whiskies I’ve reviewed to date get this recommendation or higher). I’m quite impressed with this, and it’s at the upper end of this category for me.
Value: The upper end of average. Pretty good buy, especially with whisky prices these days.
