3 Port Cask Whiskies You Have to Try

As well as being a whisky fiend, I’m also partial to a cheeky port or two now and then, especially with a cheese board. In fact, for me that’s one of the best things about Christmas.

This fortified wine from Portugal has a rich, sweet, complexity that compliments whisky perfectly. This is why more and more quality whiskies are now being finished in port casks. Now, having tried plenty in my time, take it from me, if done right, port cask finishing takes whisky to a whole other dimension.

Second only to sherry, port casks are the most common type of casks used to finish whisky. The sweet, rich, complex notes from the fortified wine casks compliment the whisky perfectly and give it the most gorgeous colour palettes. Best of all is the fact that different types of port offer completely different finishes. A tawny cask finished whisky for example, will take on a plethora of different flavours and aromas compared with a ruby cask finished dram.

If, like me, you’re big into your port finishing, here are 3 port cask whiskies you have to try.

Benrinnes 10 Year Old Lady of the Glen Tawny Finish

Tawny port used to be seriously overlooked in place of ruby, yet in recent years that’s started to change. Now tawny is quickly making its presence felt.

Tawny is generally a much smoother, sweeter, and mellower port when compared with ruby. The flavour profiles lend themselves perfectly to this drop from the Benrinnes Distillery. It is a full bodies Speyside that was re-racked into first fill ex-tawny port casks for two years.

First distilled in 2013, and bottled a decade later, it has an ABV of 57.8% and is a gorgeous light toffee colour.

On the nose there’s strong medjool dates, sweet berries, honeycomb, winter baking spices, and a hint of tobacco pipe smoke and leather. I could sniff this all day!

On the palate things just get better and better. Strong sticky toffee and date pudding notes here with vanilla custard, apricot jam, orange zest, dark chocolate honeycomb, cinnamon, and Bramley apple sauce.

The finish is where the tawny notes really shine through. There’re more red berries, red grapes, morello cherries, and honey. Fairly short in length, with a very pleasant mouthfeel. There’s also a suggestion of wood with a spicy, peppery kick.

Ardbeg Spectacular Single Malt

Who says a peated whisky cannot be finished in port casks?

Ardbeg Spectacular is a special release whisky, released for Fèis Ìle 2024, the annual Islay Festival which is one of the largest whisky festivals in the world. Specifically, it was produced for the final day of the festival, which is aptly known as ‘Ardbeg Day’.

This was a first for Ardbeg and was a pretty big gamble for them. Thankfully it paid off perfectly as the resulting whisky is unique mish mash of different flavours and notes that work in harmony with one another.

Matured in port casks before being combined with whiskies aged in bourbon barrels, it’s a light straw colour with an ABV of 46%.

On the nose you get those classic peaty Ardbeg aromas, accompanied by lemon meringue pie, heather honey, sugared almonds, sea spray, and sandalwood.

On the palate there are salted caramel flavours, sweet honey, bonfire smoke, apple turnovers, toffee, and Golden Delicious apples.

The finish is lengthy and has an oily mouthfeel. There’s more peat smoke, bonfire toffee, salted caramel, and a menthol mintiness lingering in the background.

As an added note, I love the red and white spiral design on the packaging. It’s not typical of Ardbeg and it definitely catches the eye.

Balvenie 21 Year Old Portwood Finish

Finally, we have this exceptional expression from Balvenie, which is actually their flagship single malt as it’s the oldest of their core range.

Finished in 30 year old port casks, or pipes as they’re also known, this 21-year-old whisky is a truly exceptional Speyside that shows you just what you can achieve when you expertly finish a fine single malt in a quality port pipe.

This is the darkest-coloured dram so far, as the dram has really taken on those port notes. Having won 10 Spirit Awards, it has a rich mahogany colour, yet at 40% ABV is decidedly mellow and as smooth as silk.

On the nose there’s a lot to take in. There’s a distinct scent of honey, sultanas, dates, figs, and red berries. You want port notes? You’ll get them on the nose that’s for sure. There’s also toasted almonds, tinned apricots, and vanilla oak.

The palate continues to impress. There’s sweet summer berries, strawberries and cream, red grapes, lightly toasted oak, toasted oats and maple syrup drenched pancakes.

The finish is fairly short and leaves you with chocolate undertones, charred oak, and mixed berry compote.

If you’d like to learn more about your favourite whiskies, or simply treat yourself to a dram or two in the process, head on over to GreatDrams.com and take a look at what we have to offer.

With an impressive selection of limited-edition, rare, and award-winning whisky, as well as heaps of whisky info on our blog, it’s the perfect spot for any whisky lovers out there.

Tags: Port Cask Whiskies

Greg

My name is Greg, and I’m a brand strategy consultant, writer, speaker, host and judge specialising in premium spirits. My mission is to experience, share and inspire with everything great about whisky, whiskey, gin, beer and fine dining through my writing, my brand building and my whisky tastings.