At this year’s Whisky Live event in Tel Aviv, one of my purchases was from The Drunken Owl distillery. This is a cask-strength (63%) rye whisky. As the label puts it:

Mashed from rye, malted barley and local well water. Over a week-long fermentation. Double distilled in a uniquely designed pot-still. Matured in a single, re-charred, ex-wine oak cask.

The founder and head distiller is Nir Dotan. So far as I can tell, he’s working with the Srigim Brewery which is about halfway between Jersualem and Ashdod. [This reminds me. I may need to do some posts about Israeli beers. There are many good quality boutique breweries in operation here.]

While I like whisky a lot, I don’t profess to be an expert. My taste buds are not so sophisticated that I can easily tell whisky types apart. The only advice I’ll give is that people should drink the whisky they like, not what other people tell them to like. For example, my preference is single malt Scotch whisky of the peaty type (like the Islay masters Laphroaig and Lagavulin) but my favorite whisky of all time is a Mortlach (from Dufftown in Speyside) and that’s not peaty. On the other hand, I’ve been know to enjoy Japanese whisky and many a blended whisky.

When it comes to Israeli whisky, Milk and Honey is undoubtedly the market leader. But there are other players and it’s worthwhile tasting their produce.

Talking of taste, last Shabbat my Friday night alcohol of choice was The Drunken Owl. What did it taste and smell like? Well, at full strength, it was overpowering. The bouquet is amazing; rich and warm. But the taste was too strong for me. However, with a little added water, it became one of the smoothest whisky drinks I have had in a long time. Watered down, the bouquet loses a lot, but that’s more than made up for by the taste. There’s a hint of spice and a warm glow to finish.

I’ll probably end up all whisky posts the same way…recommended!