Westward K&L Exclusive Single Barrel #277 Cask Strength Single Barrel American Single Malt Whiskey

(750ml) (Previously $100)

$70.00 View

Westward has long been producing some of the finest American single malts available due to a few intentional choices, plus their Scotland-like climate in Oregon. We’ve selected one of their oldest available casks and it’s a classic. Westward only uses Pacific Northwest-grown barley, and it’s all malted just ten miles from the distillery at Great Western Maltings. This two-row barley is malted to spec—high color pale malt—which would be something akin to a medium or medium+ coffee roast. This brings out an array of beautiful toasted flavors ranging from filberts, almonds, and coffee to chocolate nibs and cereals. Perhaps the biggest flavor differentiator is in the yeast choice. The vast majority of distillers use a highly efficient distiller’s yeast; not so here. Westward employs the Chico Strain ale yeast—the very same yeast that accounts for the flavor of Sierra Nevada’s famous Pale Ale. Combine that with a low and slow five day ferment and the tropical fruit esters in the whiskey are off the charts. Sweet mash leads to a little extra variation from barrel to barrel, making the selection that much more special. Our barrel was aged in brand new #2 char 100% American oak for over five years in Clackamas, Oregon. The predominantly cool and wet climate with a short hot summer isn’t all that different from Scotland, allowing for that ester development and barrel extraction combination that makes great single malt so special. Distilled 04/21/16. Bottled 06/10/21.