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French Whisky
Given their long history of distilling, cooperage and fine food and wine it's surprising that the French have taken to whisky so late. Not to mention the fact that whisky is now so popular in France that it’s rapidly becoming the country's national drink (they consume more whisky per capita than the Americans, the Scots or the Irish). While the industry is young, the quality is already very high. Several producers are now marketing their wares on Australian shores.
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Warenghem Distillery Armorik Maitre de Chai Single Malt French Whisky (700ml)Brittany, FRANCE$185. 00Bottle$2220.00 DozenABV: 46%Tasting note: Brassy gold. Sponge cake and cocoa over a delicate fruitiness. Dried orange peel? Marzipan? Gorgeous texture with a sumptuous, rich, rounded profile; juicy malt and dried fruit characteristics are delivered on a bed of feathery spices. Some late sweet oak input. Like the other Armorik whiskies, this is both complex and beautifully integrated. 46% Alc./Vol. Other reviews... Seaweed piled in a beach bonfire, Keemun tea, hide-covered tomes, and toffee apples. Soupy, salty smoke without the heat on this dram, which was matured for 6 years in first-fill oloroso. The flavors bring an array of apple peelings, cough sweets, aniseed, and roasted sesame seed before developing some savory elements of roast pork. A spicy tingle takes you through to the finish. Water coaxes out apple jelly and pear notes. (1,000 bottles)
84 points - www.maltadvocate.com, (Spring 2015) Reviewed by: Jonny McCormick![3233990003691_1.jpg]()
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Warenghem Distillery Armorik 10 Year Old Single Cask Australian Exclusive Cask Strength Single Malt French Whisky (700ml)Brittany, FRANCE$199. 00Bottle$2388.00 DozenABV: 56%Le Baron Des Spirits is offering Australia the chance to taste a unique, limited edition cask of Brittany's Armorik Single Malt whisky. To introduce the special release its native French maker, Armorik General Manager and whisky craftsman of Distillerie Warenghem, David Roussier, visited Australian shores for the very first time. Le Baron cast a vote late last year after calling on the community of local whisky lovers to choose a favourite from three preselected special casks. Amongst the three were a Vinho and a Port cask - but it was the Sauternes cask, used to age sweet white wine from Bordeaux that came out on top as the winner. It was also the star of the seven exclusive tastings with Armorik hosted by master David Roussier around Australia. Distilled in August 2006, this along with recent bottlings from Glanna ar Morr mark Brittany as the new Tasmania on the world whisky map. The collector incentive is obvious, but we'd rather see this gets appreciated for what it is. Needless to say, stocks are extremely limited. Tasting note: Peated to 10-12 ppm and aged entirely in a Sauternes cask. Pure gold. Momentarily off-key aromas recover with penetrating vanilla fudge and ginger cake over rustic scents of straw bail, damp earth, evolving to lanolin and wet wool. Within 2-3 minutes the aromatic focus shifts towards orange peel-freshness mingling with fruit'n'nut chocolate, especially hazelnut, then a sweeter, deeper core of marmalade or fig paste. Full bodied with a gristy, gingery warmth to the delivery. Brimming with flavours of dark chocolate, burnt orange and thick malt. Peppery then firmer to finish with stewed apple / smokey citrus. Lanolin and lucerne bail later in the fade as the farmyard aspect repeats. References Longrow or the peatiest incarnations of Bunnahabhain. A malt of substantial presence and complexity. Just gets better and better... 56% Alc./Vol. 250 bottles.
Europe's Expanding whisky scene bears fruits in France.
Not only good at enjoying whisky, the French are making it - and doing it with a prodigious flair. The industry is set to take off. Nicolas Julhès, head of the Distillerie de Paris anticipates “...within 15 years the world's best whiskies will be French. We will be able to stop copying the Scots and bring a real French style." Most French whisky producers already differentiate from their Scottish counterparts by use of a range of cereals and still types (these include cognac stills, Armagnac stills, fruit eau-de-vie stills and portable stills).There are dozens of rising stars in the south and near Alsace, but those in Brittany, a western region with strong Celtic roots, are proving the industry has already ‘arrived’, turning out seriously good malts and blends. Look out for whiskies from the Warenghem Distillery marketed under the Armorik label. Located in Lannion in the north of Brittany, originally the company produced a herbal elixir (“Elixir d'Armorique” still available today) then moved on to fruit liqueurs. They began making blended whiskies in 1987 and then tackled the single malt category in 1998. An unusual move, but one that’s paid off in spades as they've won several awards in a very short time. Also noteworthy are peated malts from Glann ar Mor - their first bottling of unpeated single malt hit the market in late 2008. Already several releases have achieved big, big scores from Jim Murray et al.