Sunday, 3 November 2024

Baillargegail 2020 3 yo

 
 
 
46°
Distillery : Distillerie du Poitou - France
1st Fill Pineau des Charentes Wine Cask 
Original Bottling 
Limited Edition 
Single Cask 
Bottled in 2023
Unchillfiltered, Uncoloured
Peated around 20 ppm
 
 
 
Two friends from Poitou, a region in the south of France, joined forces to create M & B Spirits, and the Distillerie du Poitou. Together they created all sorts of spirits, gin, rum and others, and now they're trying their hand at whisky with the first whisky from Poitou, soberly entitled Baillargegail (don't ask me how it's pronounced), in tribute to the region's dialect. It's 3 years and 1 month old to be precise, and 480 bottles of 50cl have been produced, Single Cask, not chill-filtered and without colouring. All this sounds very good to me, but ageing it in wine casks seems rather risky.
 
 
 

Let's Taste It : 
Baked apple, paraffin, hand cream, light vanilla. Goose fat, straw. A halo of smoke above it all. A zest of orange. It's quite farmhouse-like. Abandoned barn, with whitewashed walls. After a while, it balances out. Honey cake. It's acidic on the palate, with unripe yellow apples and lemon pulp. Grapefruit. A drop of royal jelly. Spices add a little fullness. Then it dries out. Bitter finish, full of earth, lime comes through, dry asparagus, horseradish, mustard. Yam.
 
In Short, 
At first, I thought the nose was no good. Then I realised that it was the best. The nose balances itself out after a while, and becomes almost acceptable, whereas the palate and finish are really badly done. Just goes to show that it's a real job to create a whisky. What's more, if you're not a specialist, it's best to avoid ageing in wine casks, which easily bring out the product's flaws. I don't want to sound cruel, this kind of initiative is daring, and I wish I could cheer these two friends. But the fact is that it takes years, even decades, before you know how to make a good whisky.
Score : 75
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
                                           To Be Listened While Sipping :
 
                                           Anche Yumuk - Your Eyes

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