In Missouri once more. PC and JS join me for an evening at one of the most interesting distilleries of the past ten years, in tOMoH's opinion. Certainly outside of Scotland.
StilL 630 24mo 2015/2025 X-86 (50%, OB Experimental, #3 Char Barrel, C#15-768, b#100): nose: roasted or charred apples, and punchy, oily apple-tree staves (why not?) Breathing allows fermented apples to emerge, in the long run. Mouth: it is very woody here too, with limited smoke and an abundance of apple pips. We also spot cut orchard-tree branches. Finish: sweeter than expected, it prolongs the smoked-apple-tree-wood vibe. There are review cards on the table, via which one is supposed to leave feedback to help the producers decide whether to make this again. It is whacky enough to be repeated, even though it is not fully successful. In small doses, maybe. 6/10
We try their cocktails, since that is the idea of the evening -- Fly to the Angels (made with their Expedition Rum) and an Old Fashioned (made with their S.S. Sorghum whiskey). Both good, with a strong preference for Fly to the Angels, simply because it is more original. We fail to take pictures.
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| I do not always drink whiskey. But when I do... |
We swiftly move to whiskey, though.
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| The serious stuff |
StilL 630 1yo b.2024 Still 2nd Shift (45%, OB Brewery Collab Series XI, New Oak Barrels, B#2): one year and seven months. At that age, every month counts! Nose: fruity! Fruits leap at you as if it were an IPA, with orange peels, carambola, and cucumber. Later on, we detect pickle, and a pickled citrus. Mouth: beer, Irn Bru... Is it rye? No, it is hoppy as a Jupiler; just one that would have more fruits soaked in it. JS detects ganja ("there is definitely a 1953 Glenfarclas thing going on"), while PC calls it hoppy. Finish: long, wide, and fruity again, we have more citrus peels, cured orange rinds, and a lick of chocolate. Perhaps it has a touch of wood, once JS suggests it. 7/10
StilL 630 6yo b.2024 Double Barrel RallyPoint (64.2%, OB Rare Release Barrel, 63mo in a 53-gallon Barrel + finished 12mo in 3 x 15-gallon Barrels, B#XI, b#95): nose: surprisingly un-rye-like (which is to say: no Irn Bru). Indeed, it has creamy wood, hazelnuts (skins on), and nut liqueur. Mahogany comes out at second sniff, then cured-grapefruit zest. Mouth: oh! Super dry and woody, desiccating. It has a lick of wood varnish, but it is a little plank-ish, close to chewing on wood chips. Repeated sipping increases that feeling. It is really bitter and drying. Finish: big, woody, full of wood shavings (some kind of darkish wood; it is unclear which). The second gulp is even woodier and drier. 6/10
StilL 630 5yo 2019/2025 Missouri Straight Bourbon (45%, OB, B#I): five years and eight months, although it is starting to be less relevant, at that age. Nose: much more traditional a nose, and very pleasant it is too. Maple syrup, marzipan, vanilla and Bourbon-cask staves, supplemented with billows of smoked orchard-tree wood. Mouth: it is a tad drying too, displaying dried orange peels, much less flavourful than in the previous dram, and cucumber peels. Indeed, it is lightly bitter too. Finish: toffee, cream soda, and crushed nut shells. Lovely. 7/10
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| Chilling with the PC |
Enough for tonight. We could go on, but we have other things on our to-do list. I will shamefully have a headache of dehydration tomorrow; I will blame the cocktails, especially the one with rum in it, yet it could also be the hefty pours and the pace at which we downed them.
In any case, excellent place to visit on a Friday night.
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| And it comes to be That the soothing light At the end of your tunnel Is just a freight train Coming your way |
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