Boutique Barrels is the single cask series of Isle of Jura, but on my sample there’s no mention of the specific cask, and after some googling I don’t believe Jura mentions cask on the bottles at all. A bit strange. I got my hand on a sample of their 1993 vintage that has a sherry finish. Although finish is understating it, because the final eight years it matured on Oloroso Pasada sherry butts. No surprise that there are plenty of sherry notes in this whisky. It was bottled at 54 per cent abv. Makes me happy, I like cask strength. On we go!
Nose: It starts off with marshmallow, honey, obviously some sherry. There’s also some of that salty see air and licorice. Very, very complex nose. Fantastic! Some water releases a sharp glue at first. Luckily that fades quickly but the nose is better without water.
Taste: Sharp at first, earthy and some raspberry. It doesn’t deliver on the promise of the nose. With some water it gets better and strangely enough also creamier.
Finish: It’s hard to define at first but then… BAM. A lot of raspberry. It is a very strange (and nice!) sensation in a whisky. It took some time for the finish to connect, but then it really hits home. I like.
Rating: 85
A fine whisky from Isle of Jura, which is good value for money. Still widely available for anywhere between 50 to 60 euros, which makes me wonder about the single cask thing. There’s no mention anywhere in shops of what cask the bottle comes from. It still gets a big thumbs up though!
