Best whisky is….from Taiwan
“Oh. My. God,” breathes Charles MacLean, author and whisky connoisseur, from behind his impressive moustache. “Is this an April fool?”
Whispers of “unbelievable”, “incredible” and “oh no” reverberate around a bar which for more than 250 years housed a Scotch whisky warehouse.
This was the weekend finale of an exclusive blind tasting, and against all odds a selection of three-year-old Scotch whiskies have been beaten by a rank outsider, distilled not in Scotland, Ireland, nor even England. But in Taiwan. The whisky in question is called Kavalan and in this test, designed to celebrate Burns Night, the Far Eastern incomer had beaten off the challenge of four whiskies from Britain, to confound the aficionados of Scotch. Of course, that is what happens to the best-laid schemes — they gang aft agley, as Burns put it.
But the real talking point was Kavalan, which is not marketed in Britain. Frantic research swiftly revealed the secret of its success. Although only two years old, this whisky is distilled with a blend of Taiwanese enthusiasm and Scottish expertise (a Dufftown firm built the distillery) seasoned with a large dose of equatorial heat and humidity.
In Taiwan, temperatures are persistently 20C higher than on Speyside, a differential which ensures that its spirit matures more quickly than its Scottish cousins. In other words, this whisky may have a young label, but the contents of the bottle are more mature than rivals of a similar age. So, skyhigh with the stocks of Kavalan we guess…..
Popularity: unranked [?]
