We have had a couple of people telling us what they thought about our Glen Moray à la Belge, Mark Watt (whisky expert), Phillip Geubels (Belgian comedian), Bart Van Gyseghem (food/drink enthusiast), Kevin Pilley (food/drink travelling journalist). This week we saw a review by Jasper Van Papeghem on facebook. Jasper is a wine specialist at Bottleadvice, he won ‘best sommelier of Belgium’ in 2017-2018. In 2017 he won the ‘Ruinart trophy’ and he wrote the book ‘biologisch, dynamisch, natuurlijk?’.
I think it is obvious to say that Jasper knows a thing or two about flavours. Read what Jasper thinks of our latest release (translation of his in Dutch written review; we apologise for any wrong translations in there):
What I personally found unique is the small bottle with the pre-finish. You get to know the raw material of this unique whisky. As with cooking or any gastronomic event, it is important and extremely educational to get to know the raw material and the golden rule remains that exceptional products can only be made with exceptional ingredients. The pre-finish is very enjoyable and good in all its simplicity and (compared to a few other whiskys from my collection) lacked some spiciness or zest.
I was therefore extremely curious what the result would be this time (after my praise of the previous batch), especially as a big geuze / kriek lover and of course whisky enthusiast this seemed like a project for me.
The color is already very promising: chestnut brown with a light golden hue.
In the nose we immediately get a nice bouquet of caramel, vanilla, toast, tropical wood and surprisingly some candied fruit and dried herbs. After the whisky has had some time to develop, we get a soft mix between cigar box, cedar, ripe apple, flowers, honey and one of my personal favourites: the tarte à tatin. What strikes me most is the softness of the whole: nothing burning or ethereal but a clean and elegant nose. Here I notice (without tasting and compared to the pre-finish) that this finish has been well thought over. ‘Finish’ in the world of whisky can often be compared to the gold medals in wine: a marketing product without much added value or quality, which does not mean that it can’t sometimes also be a real added value.
On the palate, the first thing that strikes you again is the softness, balance and elegance of this whisky.
The tarte à tatin returns with some caramel, butterscotch, ripe apple topped with some dark cherry, Mon Chéri and chocolate. Everything in perfect balance with a soft moelleux and aftertaste where even a light spiciness / spiciness lingers that gives the whole some extra power.
For me personally you can test the quality of a good whisky by its aftertaste … what sticks? How long? And above all: is alcohol getting the upper hand? With this Whisky a la Belge, for me, the tarte a tatin, dark cherry and a fine spiciness lingers with a very long aftertaste where the alcohol always remains in the background and never takes the upper hand. What surprised me the most was the absolute balance between the whole with especially the light moelleux softness of this exceptional whisky that reminds me a bit of a top bourbon in terms of mouthfeel but with the elegance and power of a real scotch. Is the finish an added value here: without a doubt yes!
I am already looking forward to the next batch!
This whisky can of course go with a cigar, after a coffee and all other traditional pairings, but due to its exceptional softness I would dare to serve it with gravadlax, game, apple pie, tarte tattin or of course just as pure enjoyment.
