Drinking Made Easy ? Forty Creek Port Wood Reserve: Defender of ...
Could you imagine what it would be like if all of Western civilization panicked every December 31st when the calendar rolled to an end? This is what?s happening with the Mayan Long Count calendar that ends on December 21, 2012. People have taken what would be a gigantic celebration for the ancient Maya and distorted it into a cataclysmic event. Instead of popping Champaign they have popped their minds reading into everything as impending doom. Sound familiar? Think back to December 31, 1999 when many celebrated New Year?s Eve in their basement sitting on a stockpile of canned food and duct tape. That?s why to avoid any paranoia associated with 2012; I?ve converted to a new calendar that starts with the release of Forty Creek Distillery?s extra special limited edition whiskies ? an event that comes around like clockwork every fall.
This year, whisky icon and Forty Creek master distiller, John Hall, has released his second edition of Port Wood Reserve. Like most of his whiskies, it starts as the distillery?s flagship Barrel Select Whisky. Instead of a traditional mashbill, each grain is distilled separately in copper pot stills with each small batch aged in its own barrel.? ?This process brings out the fruitiness and spiciness of the rye, the nuttiness of the barley, and the heartiness of the corn,? explains the distillery, without the need for an age statement. ?John?s varietal corn, rye & barley whiskies are aged anywhere from six to ten years before they are chosen for blending.?John believes that while age is important, it is not the only component of whisky making that results in a great tasting whisky ? grain selection, type of still, type of barrel and level of toasting in the barrel, are all factors that contribute to the final taste experience,? explains Forty Creek?s Beth Warner.
However, it was another side of the business that inspired the evolution from a great whisky to a very special whisky starting with locally grown Niagara grapes. Simplified, these grapes are fortified in white oak heavy charred barrels until it?s transformed into a smooth medium-dry Port that explodes with classic plum and dried fruit flavors. ?The Port used for the barrels to age Forty Creek Port Wood went into the barrels in 1999. The Port was removed in 2009 in order to age the whisky, which spent two years aging in the Port barrels.? Beth continues, ?John is an expert when it comes to making fortified wines.?When he first started out as a winemaker in Ontario in the early 1970?s the market was dominated by ports and sherries so he had lots of practice making fortified wines early in his wine career.?In fact, the 10 year old Tawny Port that was taken out of the barrels is delicious.?
The two-year Port barrel aging that Beth describes is above and beyond the traditional finishing process used by dozens of distillers. There?s a reason for this. John Hall explains, ?My Forty Creek Port Wood reserve did undergo a secondary aging process that is longer than the four month finishing in Sherry casks that I use for my Barrel Select.?This is because I was looking for more intense Port character in the Port Wood Reserve, in the form of dried fruits and greater spiciness.? The result is well worth the two year wait.
The whisky has a deep resonant copper color that oozes sexiness. It continues its seduction from the moment the cork is released from the bottle. The nose starts off clean and subtle with a little spice evolving into a complex and classic mix of dried fruits. The flavors of the whisky take a sharp turn with a more rounded body than its nose would let you believe. A full body that delicately balances smoky oak, hot spices and sweet vanilla. All combined taking your mouth for a ride with an endless growing symphony of a finish with distinguished dried fruits balanced with more peppery ginger spice. This whisky is so graceful that after the first sip the port barrel aging seems nothing but natural.
Recently Kittling Ridge Estate Wine and Spirits was re-branded as Forty Creek Distilling. So with the re-branding, will there be a shift meaning a port barrel shortage for a potential third version of the Port Wood Reserve? Whisky lovers shouldn?t panic yet. John Hall comforts with, ?although I am planning on divesting of the wine side of my business, in order to concentrate on whisky making, I will still be able to make Port Wine.?I will not be able to bottle and sell the wine to a retail customer, however, I will be able to distill it into brandy and specialty spirits.? Reading between the lines, I suspect this means more innovation will flow out of this ground-breaking distillery.
But what about the December 21st doomsday fear monger?s argument? Now that I?m on the Forty Creek calendar, the only apocalypse on my radar is what?s going to happen when Forty Creek runs out of this edition of the Port Wood Reserve, which could be on December 21st. Perhaps the Mayan calendar has a point. Still, before you go running off to your doomsday shelter, I can assure you that John Hall has a plan for the next special release that will set the whisky world in awe for September 2013. Until then, I strongly suggest that next to your stockpile of apocalypse duct tape you set aside a few bottles of Port Wood Reserve to get you through the year.
Blair Phillips
Toronto Canada
blair_phillips@yahoo.com
Follow on Twitter: @Blair_Phillips
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