Whiskey fans have been waiting for the American single malt category to finally get its own legal definition for about two years, and a coalition of distilleries just sent a letter to the TTB urging action on the matter. In the meantime, both legacy and craft distilleries continue to release this still under-the-radar style of American whiskey. One of the best is Seattle’s Westland Whiskey, which just announced the release of two new single malts finished in beer and wine casks.
These new entries in the Cask Exploration Series were conceived of as a tribute to Westland’s home in the Pacific Northwest, so the distillery team worked with local breweries and wineries—and there indeed many in the region—to source used casks. “We’re delving into the vast possibilities of cask finishing with these new releases,” said master blender Shane Armstrong in a statement. “The Pacific Northwest is known for its exceptional beer, wine, and whiskey. These expressions bring those delicacies together.”
The first expression in the pair is the Beer Cask Finish American Single Malt Whiskey (this is not the first time Westland has used this type of finish, as the distillery worked with various local breweries for its Cask Exchange series). This whiskey was made from a mashbill of specific varietals of malted barley, some of which is commonly used to make beer, including Washington Select Pale Malt, Munich Malt, Extra Special Malt, Brown Malt, Pale Chocolate Malt, Pilsen Malt, and Maris Otter Malt. It was aged for a minimum of eight years—originally in new American oak and ex-bourbon and rye whiskey barrels, and then in casks that were previously used to age Scotch ale, stout, brown ale, doppelbock, saison, and stock ale. According to the official tasting notes, the result is a bright whiskey with a malt-forward flavor that has notes of vanilla pastry cream, caramel sauce, and lavender green tea on the palate.
The second of the pair is the Wine Cask Finish American Single Malt Whiskey. The barley used for this mashbill consisted of Washington Select Ale Malt, Munich Malt, Extra Special Malt, Brown Malt, and Pale Chocolate Malt. This whiskey was also aged in new and used oak barrels, this time for a minimum of five years, and then finished in five different types of wine cask: Tempranillo, WA Red Blend, Cabernet Sauvignon, Syrah, and Petit Verdot. Official tasting notes describe a fruity whiskey with notes of chocolate raspberry turnover, Earl Grey tea, and dried strawberry on the palate. Both of these whiskeys were bottled at 46 percent ABV.
The Cask Exploration Series is being released in limited numbers, with about 11,000 bottles of the Beer Finish and 14,600 of the Wine Finish. The initial launch will be at the distillery and from its website (SRP $75 for each expression), while a national rollout will begin in September with the potential of future batches on the way in the coming years. You can find the rest of the Westland lineup available to purchase from websites like ReserveBar.
