Review by: The Muskox
This is a very interesting whisky from Tel Aviv’s Milk & Honey distillery. I understand it, they parked 20 casks on the roof of a hotel on the shore of the Dead Sea and left them there for a full 3 years before bottling. For a distillery that already has serious angel’s share problems, this is an interesting move. At 430 metres (1,412 freedom-metres) below sea level and with an average daily high of 30 degrees C (86 degrees F(reedom)), this should represent the pinnacle of hot/dry-climate maturation. There is some seasonal variation in temperatures, with summer highs reaching nearly 40 degrees on average and winter highs at a rather more comfortable 21 degrees. I wonder if the higher barometric pressure or the salt-laden breeze would also have an effect.
Distillery: Milk & Honey.
Bottler: Official bottling.
Region: Israel.
ABV: 56.2%. Cask strength.
Age: 3 years. Distilled May 24th 2018. Bottled July 4th 2021.
Cask type: Vatted from 20 casks, a mixture of ex-bourbon, red wine, and STR casks, that matured at the Dead Sea.
Price: N/A, not sure what my friend paid for his bottle.
Color: Light amber. Natural Color. Non-chill-filtered.
Nose: Spice and fresh red fruit. Nectarines, plums, blackberries and blood oranges, along with sweet allspice and cinnamon. Sesame seeds, brown sugar, and sweet cereals. Oaky-dusty, turning more fragrant and exotic as it sits. A little bit of something like celery seed. I want to say that it’s salty… but I’m not sure if it’s actually salty or it’s just the power of suggestion.
Palate: Oily, soft texture, without much heat. Sweet and malty on the arrival – cherry pie and frutti di bosco tart dusted with powdered sugar, then more candied cherry and chewy caramels. Buttery and spiced oak sweetness in the middle, with assam black tea and cloves. A bit red-wine-y, but not particularly tannic. A bit of salt here.
Finish: Medium length. Juicy fruit – orange, pomegranate, more blackberry, and a bit of melon. Milk chocolate, browned butter, and old oak. Red wine. Maybe a bit of salt.
Possible SMWS bottling name: “Sea salt sangria”
Conclusion: It’s not a particularly complex whisky, but it’s certainly a tasty one. The wine and STR casks are at the forefront here, providing luscious red-fruit sweetness, which is underlain by a pleasant butteriness. I’m generally not a huge fan of unpeated STR or red-wine cask whiskies, but this one has enough complexity backing it up and isn’t too sweet, too tart, or too tannic. It reminds me a fair bit of that Rioja-cask Glenallachie I tried a couple months back. Nice stuff!
Final Score: 84.
Scoring Legend:
- 95-100: As good as it gets. Jaw-dropping, eye-widening, unforgettable whisky.
- 90-94: Sublime, a personal favorite in its category.
- 85-89: Excellent, a standout dram.
- 80-84: Quite good. Quality stuff.
- 75-79: Decent whisky worth tasting.
- 70-74: Meh. It’s definitely drinkable, but it can do better.
- 60-69: Not so good. I might not turn down a glass if I needed a drink.
- 50-59: Save it for mixing.
- 0-49: Blech.
Malt Runners 