A few interesting TWE exclusives landed not long ago, and the first of which we’ll be tasting is this Kavalan Vinho. Essentially this is a cask-strength, single-cask Kavalan distilled in June 2012, aged entirely in a wine barrique and bottled in 2018, exclusively for The Whisky Exchange.
Kavalan Vinho Barrique 2012 TWE Exclusive, 53.2% , £225
Nose: Big sweet and thick notes with the wine influence very strong with this one as they say 🙂 oodles of thick cherry jam, sticky toffee, and liquor soaked sultanas, figs and quite a bit of spice, and cooked apples sprinkled with brown sugar,pepper, earth and even some leather and prune.
Palate: Big entry as one can expect, with lots of spice and Wine tannins : Pepper, clove, cinnamon, ginger powder, earthy black cardamom (the ones they use in Indian cooking), licorice, and then the red-black fruit kick in with an avalanche of plum, berry, and some date, strawberry and cherry filled chocolate sprinkled with cinnamon, and some more sweet wine.
Finish: Pepper, licorice, apple peel and some charred wood with a touch of tobacco and sultana sweetness.
Conclusion: This is a MASSIVE whisky, complex, and big, sweet and spicy with everything one could hope for from a good wine cask. It is overwhelming in many ways, and packs quite a punch. The wine combines well with the sweetness, and this creates a great after meal whisky. Good work and good selection of cask from TWE. Not cheap, though, as Kavalans mostly go… Like!
Score: 89/100
Still available on the TWE site for £225