Rutte Koornwyn XO Extra Oak

A quick announcement before we kick of this weekly genever post, to say that this’ll be the last weekly genever post for now. There’s simply not that much genever out there, which means that reviewing something each week is a bit of a struggle, as there’s not as vibrant a sample swap scene as there is with whisky.

Since I don’t plan on buying a new bottle every seven days, I’ll slow down a bit on the genever front. Instead, I’ll incorporate reviews on genever in my regular blog post schedule. So instead of every Sunday, you’ll now see a genever review pop up during the week every now and again. I’ve no idea how often, that simply depends on how much interesting genever I’ll encounter in the future.

Okay, on the the subject at hand. As we discussed last week, Korenwijn is somewhat of an odd duck in the genever family. But, that doesn’t say anything about the quality of the product. Among the different Korenwijns out there are many gems. One of them is the Rutte Koornwijn XO (meaning Extra Oak).

It is a blend of distillates with different ages, matured in both new and re-fill American oak casks. A subtle use of botanicals brings it all together.

Rutte Koornwyn XO Extra Oak (38%, OB)

Nose: It is a bit shy and slightly musty too start, but then opening up to oranges , almonds and angelica root. Somewhat floral too, but also hints of cinnamon and straw.
Taste: Warming spices and dried fruit. Think cinnamon, accompanied by apricots. Hints of chili pepper, as well as cough syrup.
Finish: Lingering spices.

The palate is very much in the same vein as some single pot still Irish whiskey, albeit a tad more spicy, and maybe not as rich. Proper stuff this.