Reviewed by: zSolaris
Image Credit: Raygun
A quick note before anything else for the sake of transparency. These three French single malt reviews were done with industry samples provided free of charge, with no expectations beyond drinking them. As always, I do my best to provide my unbiased opinion, and readers can decide how they want to take these reviews . For more, check out the ethics statement we use on Maltrunners.com.
Ninkasi 5 Year (2017) Version Française
Distillery: Ninkasi.
Bottler: La Maison & Velier USA.
Region: Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes, France.
Age: 5 Years. Distilled in 2017 and bottled in 2022.
ABV: 46.0%.
Cask Type: ex-Cognac Cask.
Additional Information: Distilled using unpeated Pilsen malt on a Charentais still.
Color: 0.5, Yellow Gold.
Nose: Gives off a bit of youth here. You get a bit of a funky, young spirit. It isn’t harsh or anything though. There’s a bit of lemongrass as well.
Palate: Funk in three ways is how I’d describe this dram. There’s a little bit of mushroom water-y funk (rehydrated shiitake mushroom water), a bit of yeast, and then a little hay and barnyard funk. Not too exciting, unfortunately.
Finish: Bright finish. Medium in length. Yuzu juice and a bit of a sour lemon tart/lemon bar.
Final Score: 71.
Artesia 4 Year (2018) Version Française
Distillery: TOS Distillery.
Bottler: La Maison & Velier USA.
Region: Hauts-de-France, France.
Age: 4 Years. Distilled in 2018 and bottled in 2022.
ABV: 50.0%.
Cask Type: ex-Bourbon Cask.
Additional Information: Distilled on a Holstein still following an eight-day fermentation cycle.
Color: 0.4, Jonquil/Ripe Corn.
Nose: It is really fragrant and aromatic with a strong diversity of notes. There are some floral notes, fruity notes, and vegetal notes. The floral notes remind me of the fresh cut garden flowers the wife has brought in all year from her little flower patch. The fruitier notes are of lemon and pear. The vegetable notes are along hte lines of celery and really crunchy, fresh, crisp lettuce. This certainly feels like I could sit here for a while picking out more flavors as well.
Palate: There’s a bit of pear along with a bit of honey rice cakes (꿀떡). Bananas foster pie and a bit of chocolate, the cheap nearly-fake chocolate kind, also bounce around.
Finish: Fairly long in length. Flavors from the palate linger for a second or two before a creaminess kicks in overdrive. It’s a rich creaminess with some depth in flavor almost like condensed milk meets double cream. The creaminess lasts for a long, long time and lingers wonderfully.
Final Score: 84
Armorik 8 Year (2014) Version Française
Distillery: Armorik.
Bottler: La Maison & Velier USA.
Region: Brittany, France.
Age: 8 Years. Distilled in 2014 and bottled in 2022.
ABV: 50.0%.
Cask Type: Refill Oloroso Sherry Cask that previously held heavily peated Scotch whisky.
Cask Number: #3609.
Color: 0.6, Old Gold.
Nose: There’s a bit of smoke here and something that reminds me of chargrilled lemons.
Palate: Chargrilled seafood, octopus specifically, with a bit of fresh lemon juice.
Finish: Medium in length. Charcoal soot is what stands out.
Final Score: 81.
Conclusion: Prior to this gamut of French whiskies, I’ve not had anything from France. This trio of French single malts were a lot of fun to work through. The Ninkasi showed some fun notes, though it came off quite youthful and perhaps just needing a few more years in the barrel. The Artesia is apparently the sister cask of a whisky that the president of La Maison du Whisky was quite excited about and I can certainly understand why with the depth of flavors and an incredible finish. The Armorik in ex-peated sherry casks comes up with a wonderful flavor profile evocative of a summer seafood barbecue and quite delicious. Overall, a really fun batch here and I’m really glad to have tried them!
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.
Check out Raygun‘s take on these three here and Whiskery Turnip‘s takes on the Ninkasi, Artesia, and Armorik as well!
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