DarkCloud Whisky of the Year #5 Review

Amrut Spectrum 004

DarkCloud Whisky of the Year #5

Background

Indian Single Malt Whisky

Initially matured in ex-bourbon casks

Finished in custom made specialty casks made with staves from Virgin American oak, Virgin French Oak, ex-Oloroso butts and ex-PX sherry butts.

Bottled at 50% abv

Released in 2021, Released in Canada in 2022

Tasted neat in a Glencairn glass.

I fully admitted in my post for my top 5 whiskies that I have not had a very fruitful relationship with Amrut whiskies through my whisky journey. I have been lucky enough to have tried many samples of many different Amrut expressions, but always found an off note in them that had prevented me from wanting to explore the brand much further. This year I was given a sample of a Canada exclusive peated port pipe release and it made me sit up straight in my chair and realized for the first time that maybe Amrut releases quality whisky after all. A little time later I was given a pour of this whisky to try. By the end of the night I was working out a trade to bring this bottle home. Thankfully that trade happened. Here it is, my number 5 top overall whisky of the year.

In the Glass

One word…DARK!

The legs on this one are rail thin and super slow to fall. The first time I looked for the legs, I thought I hadn't swirled the glass properly as they did not start falling for 15 or so seconds. When they did start to fall they moved at slower than a snail’s pace. After a minute, only one or two had made it down to the whisky below.

Nose

Oh yeah!! The nose on this one is impeccably deep dark and full of heavy notes. It's intense in all the right ways but balanced in its delivery in that nothing stands out way more than anything else. Initial hit of reducing brown sugar in a pan, maybe a pan being heated by a charcoal fire under it. There's a strong black coffee note that hangs right next to a dark fruity tobacco note. There’s also a bit of meatiness in here. Savoury notes of hoisin sauce or a sweet style teriyaki. I could nose this whisky for a long long time. The first time I tasted this at home I did nose it for almost 45 minutes.

Palate

This definitely hits heavier than 50% abv as soon as it hits the mouth. I said in my “best of” post that the first time I tried this it left my cheeks feeling raw. I've tasted whiskies in the high 60’s abv that haven't done that to my mouth. At first I get a strong burnt brown sugar and molasses note. This is quickly joined by a woody oak note. The sherry staves in the casks almost take a back seat at the start, but then they start coming out and a really dark burnt red fruit note shows. It comes with a touch of nuttiness and cinnamon spice. Once the chaos integrates a bit more some subtle notes of malt and a bit of dark bitter chocolate come through. The finish on this glorious whisky is pretty medium in length but it's still strong. The cinnamon spice mixed with molasses and almost a flat cola note linger for a while letting your brain reconfigure after the ride it just went on.

Conclusion

This is not a whisky for the faint of heart in any way. From the first swirl in the glass to the first faint sniff and then the initial touch on the tongue this whisky hits at every chance. I absolutely love the wild ride this dram takes me on each and every time I sip it. It’s been 10 minutes since I finished my dram and it's still apparent on my tongue. This is a whisky that needs to be shared and that is exactly how it came to me and I am very happy I can share this with people in my circle.