Tea to Chinese, Coals to Newcastle, Steel to Sheffield... These are just some of the phrases that, I am sure, Doug Clement is hearing now that he has imported a pallet of Bill Lark's Tasmanian whisky into Scotland. But why not? Suntory have been importing their whisky from Japan for over ten years now (ok, it helps that they also own Bowmore and Auchentoshan, but we will forget that for a bit) and Amrut have been selling Indian whisky here for over five years.
Add in Penderyn and The English Whisky Company and we can see quite easily that there are many countries trying to sell their version of the Scottish drink to the Celts. And that is without even considering the Irish and American whiskies!
I first came across Bill Lark when he paid me a visit in my shop whilst he was visiting Scotland, consulting on the new Kingsbarns Distillery, near St Andrews. He informed me of his microdistillery back in Tasmania, and that he uses small 50 and 100 litre barrels to mature his Malt Whisky, allowing the liquid to mature quicker, but what amazed me was his passion for Scottish whisky. Sure, he could have started promoting his company if he has wanted, but the reality was he wanted to talk to me about whisky - and that endeared Bill Lark to me. I later asked him to take part in my "6 Questions with..." column, and without a hesitation, he agreed, and then a few months later, our paths crossed again, when he was on a motorbiking whisky holiday with a few mates around Scotland. Again, never once trying to promote or sell his product, he (and his pals) just stood in my shop trying whiskies with me and then bought a few to take with them.
So it was with great relief that now that I've finally got to try his whiskies, I found that I really liked them. Always bottling single casks, the two malts I tried were lightly peated and distinguished from each other by their alcohol strength.
Lark 43% Single Malt Whisky
Light pear drops on the nose, with some cereal and just a touch of sweet smoke. A little chemical element, but with some minty aromas and a bundle of dried apricots and raisins. The palate is lovely and spicy, very creamy but with a lot of power. The alcohol is noticeable, but is calmed by white chocolate and a berry element. Gingerbread appears on the palate with some Parkin and dark toffee. It is a really tasty bottle of whisky. 8/10
Lark 58% Single Malt Whisky (cask LD119)
Everything you taste in the 43% whisky is here, just amplified! Having said that though, this whisky has an exceptionally creamy texture, a lot more mint and with a sugared almond flavour. It also integrates the higher alcohol level much much more than the lower strength malt, and has a herbaceous finish that I like a lot. Adding a little water opens out the Parkin and berry elements a bit more in this malt and actually reveals a much more honeyed flavour. 8.5/10
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