Water of Life – Westward Cascadia Series
There are quite a few things Portland, Oregon is known and loved for.
Natural beauty, serenity, the absence of sales tax and being one of the more environmental concerned cities in the US on one hand, a perplexingly amazing mecca for micro-brews and artisanal coffee roasting on the other, paired with the fact that it is the hometown that bred musical delights like Elliott Smith, Sleater Kinney and Poison Idea.
Based on Portland’s agrarian economy for ingredients that are just meant to be distilled, it should not be further wondrous that it also harbours a growing handcrafted, small-batch distillery scene as well.
Enter Westward Whiskey and its head distiller Miles Munroe.
What sounds like a nom de guerre, is the name of one of the more charismatic luminaries that the emergence of single malt whisky in the Northwest of the US has brought forth.
Having started out experimenting with homebrewing, Miles eventually transitioned to channelling his alchemy in a grain-to-glass approach to creating exciting new single malt barley expressions.
Based on Munroe’s brewing expertise, Westward ferments its own beer for the wash, which is the genesis for the liquid sunshine the distillery has become known for. Devoid of distracting age statements, Westward’s ethos is firmly centred around the belief that it each expression is being released when it is perceived to be ready.
Given the aforementioned, I was intrigued when I learned about the man himself was going to hold court in Sydney to guide through a dedicated tasting of Westward’s Cascadia Creative Series.
After being eased into the proceedings with an introduction to Westward Distillery, we were off to the races and treated to an evening where the finely calibrated matching of both liquid offerings and sustenance reigned supreme.
Apart from Westward’s core expression and the Stout Cask Finish, which we have paid homage to in a dedicated article before, a first highlight of the evening was the Single Malt Rum Cask Batch:
Having matured in Guatemalan Casa Magdalena rum casks, the bronze hued drop tickles the nostrils with sweet, fruity and citrussy aromas and subtle hints of neroli. On the top of the mouth, sugar cane is married with molasses, resulting in a rich hybrid of bananas and toffee. The reverberating finish leaves one lusting for another sip as raisiny vanilla beans and brown sugar meet an oaky piquancy, backed by the warming sensation of an ABV of 62.5%. Not bad, not bad at all.
Up next was Tempranillo Single Barrel expression, which is an incarnation of Westward unlike anything I have tasted before.
With the colour of love and affection, the nose is dominated by sweet, fruity, berry and musky aromas. On the palate a complex flavour profile is unveiled, comprised of juicy and pleasantly acidic cherry nuances, vanilla and caramel, rounded out by a lavish finish accentuated by slightly overripe melon, cinnamon and orangey, dark chocolatey facets.
Westward’s oak coloured Pinot Noir Single Barrel proved to be a tour de force in terms of big and bold flavours: What the nose promises in terms of honey, woody cherry and chocolate aromas, seamlessly transitions to the palate, where sweet, nutty almond flavours dance against a backdrop of the bitterness of coffee.
The sheer endless finish evokes a Pavlovian reaction with a melange of a honey-like sweetness, subtle hints of berry and fresher shades of plums.
An evening that was testament to why Westward Distillery is held in such high esteem by whiskey aficionados and one that makes me look forward to future emissions. The Westward Cascadia series will be exclusively available through The Whiskey Club.
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lead image from company website, second image by T
