Irish Single Malt Extra Old (Whisky-Fässle)

We’ve seen a series of ‘Extra Old’ blended malts lately but it’s new in Irish bottlings as far as I know.

not sure why this Irish Single Malt Extra Old from Whisky-Fässle doesn’t have an age statement, for some reason it would be a mix of older and younger spirits. In any case pricing would lead us to a decent average age.

Irish single malt ‘Extra Old’ (50,6%, Whisky-Fässle 2016, barrel)

Nose: fresh, bright and very fruity. Banana, lemon, pineapple, whitecurrant. Rather great. Sweet barley. Hints of lime blossom, grasses, buttercups and light honey.

Mouth: same fruitiness. Melons, pears, pineapple, sweetened grapefruit juice too. More of a vague Haribo fruitiness, lacking some of the unique passion fruits of the old (non-blended) Irish malts, if you know what I mean. Some minty notes and young grassy touches. Back to powder sugar and almonds. Hints of vanilla, and perhaps a little latte. Green spices too.

Finish: long, on biscuits, fruits and a little green oak.

This XO sits in the middle of the older 1988-1991 expressions and the 2000-2003 bottlings we’ve seen before. Perhaps a mix of both. Around € 170 from Whisky-Fässle.

Score: 88/100