Amrut ex-PX Sherry - Bottled for Truth Malters

Cask #6490 / 7 Years / 60% / Exclusive release for Taiwan

According to various reports, India is the world's largest consumer of whisky. They drink on average, 2.6 litres per person per year, and nearly one in two bottles of whisky is sold in India. That's a lot of whisky. And a big thirst.

There are a few distilleries in India, the most well-known ones being Rampur, Paul John, and Amrut.

Starting in 1948, Amrut has been pretty much at the forefront of whisky coming out of India, and their range offers something for all whisky drinkers.

This review was quite a nice surprise to be able to do. Firstly, it's for a very hard to get bottling that was produced just for Taiwan. Secondly, the bottle is an exclusive release for a Canadian company called Truth Malters. Created and steered by Larry Schoen, the Truth Malters team is creating some astonishing relationships with distilleries and carving out some great inroads for the Canadian market.

Appearance: Deep gold with thick, oily legs.

Nose: Rich, buttery sherry with a beautiful dunnage-funk note. The peat is quite light and mellow, and it integrates with the sherry richness perfectly. Held to the nose a little longer, notes of over-ripe banana, morello cherry jam, and some fresh yeasty dough that's just risen. That dunnage note though - loving it!

Palate: For a whisky that's coming in at 60%, it's incredibly well behaved and isn't at all aggressive and alcohol-forward. It's actually very well restrained and gives a message of "watch out, be careful, and don't underestimate me"

The sweetness of sherry combines with that restrained heat and merges perfectly with gentle peat smoke. The ppm is mild enough to attract peat lovers and non-peat lovers alike, as there's a decent level of sweetness, richness, and smokiness.

A second sip uncovers honey-coated nuts, warming pepper, cake spice, and a fleeting wisp of Chinese 5 Spice.

Finish: Long and sweet richness merge with gentle notes of mild peat, flashes of tobacco, and rich stone fruit.

Water adds... Toffee and candy notes on the nose. Lighter oil with some woody tannins on the palate. I actually prefer it without the addition of water.

Conclusion: Quite stupendous. It really is. I would encourage people to hunt one down if they can as it's just that good. An extremely well-educated and solid cask pick by the folk at Truth Malters that highlights what Amrut can do, but at another level.

And the artwork on the label is pretty unique as well.

Huge thanks to Larry for getting this bottle across the water to me.