This week’s review is a local dram that I had held as part of my personal collection even before I had set foot here; an expression I asked a cousin to procure to bring some diversity and colour. Surprisingly it’s been around seven years that the expression has been holding cupboard real estate, which is when I thought it was time to give it a go and scooped it on my way over!

The Infinity Solera Cask is a product of the Great Southern Distilling Company based out of Albany and Margaret River, and a product of Western Australia! The craft distillery from what I’ve noticed fancies the solera technique, something inherent to many of their single malts. The technique ensures that newer spirits always mix with the old and never more than half the tun is ever emptied, hence the name tag “Infinity”. This fusion encourages consistency in flavours and balances out some of those brazen, amateurish charachteristics of freshly distilled spirits.

In all honesty, I am curious to know how this dark toned beauty will play out on the senses, as my personal experience with Limeburners have been either a hit or a miss, so keen to try this one out.

The Solera Cask has been matured in 500 litre puncheon casks that prevously held port wine. Although there isnt an age to the whisky, the nature of the blending makes it difficult to give an estimate as it involves a fusion of really old spirits and really naive ones. This takes the average age of the expression to about 8 years.

Abv : 43%

Eye : Chestnutolorosso sherry

Nose : Caramel and sultanas; dates with a drizzle of honey and rum, infused with the sweetness of bananas. Woody nuances with cues from herbal flora, almost medicinal in nature, spiced with ginger, white pepper  and cinnamon.

Taste : Red wine with a crisp, sweet palate; dried fruits, vanilla, and some earthy, woody pine notes. Deep lush flavours coming in from plums and peaches bringing with it a hint of melon char and menthol; cinnamon, ginger, and white pepper continue to flow into the palate.

Finish : Medium to Long |Red wine with a mildly dry feel, plums and dried fruits accompanied by a woody residue on the palate.

Traditional woody pine influences emanate out of this  expression, that to me are very much woven into the distillery’s fabric. The expression is youthful, flavourful, and almost vibrant; clearly a better expression than most I’ve had from the distillery. Rich though not too heavy with strong points going in for complexity and a good delivery of flavours. I did fancy this one and enjoyed savouring the expression slowly, finding the solera technique to have done this one justice, imbibing both depth and breadth into the spirit.

Knowing that this spirit was purchased almost 7 years ago, I’m not sure of its price then; but you can still get your hands on one for about AUD $155. Costly – Perhaps! But at the same time quite wholesome, with good value considering it is a local brew that obviously will be pressed with heavy taxes.

Slainte!