That Boutique-y Whisky Company Armorik 5 Year Old Sauternes Cask Single Malt French Whisky (500ml) - Batch 2

Batch two in Boutiquey's wine cask series includes this Armorik from Brittany's Distillerie Warenghem, matured in an ex-Sauternes wine cask, bottled at 46.4% with 286 bottles in the run. Having tasted several releases from this French whisky upstart, we can confirm the quality can be very high, even when young.

Located in Lannion on the north coast of Brittany, the Warenghem distillery has been an independent family-owned company for over 100 years. In 1998 they began producing single malt, becoming the first distillery in France to do so. As usual there's a quirky label, best explained by the Boutique-y team: "The Veneti (Gaulish: "the kin, the friendly ones") were a Gaelic tribe who lived in Armorica, now known as Brittany. We’ve set the scene deep in the forest of Gaul with a still for the cauldron and fields of barley in the background. The white swan is a nod to the late Dr. Jim Swan who gave the distillery guidance, reviewing their equipment, and techniques, proposing a series of small changes."

Notes from the bottlers... Nose: Plenty of peach and apricot with aromatic wafts of wildflowers and soft oak spice. Palate: Rich, gloopy honey, toasted nuts, and more stone fruits welcome the way for warming baking spices. Finish: Gingerbread, more sweet, floral honey, and a well rounded peppering of toasted oak and spice on the finish.