Stauning Smoke Floor-Malted Single Malt Whisky
Alright - now I’ve tried the Stauning’s Floor-Malted Rye and the Kaos Triple-Malted Whiskey. The Smoke Floor-Malted Single Malt is the third of three samples that Stauning generously sent prior to our podcast recording, and the first two had me expecting great things. In short, that’s exactly where this one landed.
Like all whiskies at Stauning, this one starts with floor-malted grain that’s turned and germinated at the distillery. Unlike other whiskies from Stauning, this one has zero rye in it. It’s all malted barley, smoked over a mix of peat from local bogs and heather from nearby Ringkøbing Fjord. The smoke in this is more akin to a Highland Park than an Islay as a result, though no less delicious or delicate.
Interestingly, Smoke is matured in no less than four different cask types: first-fill bourbon casks, first-fill Madeira casks, first-fill Jamaica Rum casks and Virgin American Oak casks. I ran out of time to ask Alex about this mix on the podcast, and so I remain curious. None of the four have a particularly strong influence and, if anything, the Jamaican Rum isn’t noticeable at all - you see Jamaican Rum, you think funk, but maybe it’s one of those without that dunder character.
I have to be honest: although I tried these three blind, I think this would have benefitted from being tasted before the Kaos. This is no slouch, but it’s also simpler, a well-balanced smoky single malt, whereas the Kaos has many more flavors to delve into. I feel a bit bad even saying that. The Smoke earned a respectable 6.5, smack dab between very good and great. I’d be thrilled to add this to my everyday rotation. But when tried next to Kaos, it loses some of the shine.
Then again…maybe that’s the secret to this dram. Simplicity. For all the finishes and steps involved, the simplicity is something remarkable. Whereas rye is the local, traditional grain, malted barley distilled using Danish techniques and traditions is a different style altogether. As I try more and more from Stauning, a thread appears binding each whisky to the other: intention. Maybe the intention here is to take it at face value, a complex pour that is deceptively simple and showcases the terroir of the peat and the heather more than the grain. I’ll have to think on that as I sip a bit more.
Stauning Smoke Floor-Malted Single Malt Whisky: Specs
Classification: World Whisky (Danish)
Origin: Stauning Distillery
Mashbill: Undisclosed
Proof: 94 (47% ABV)
Age: NAS
Location: Denmark
Stauning Smoke Floor-Malted Single Malt Whisky Price: $100
Stauning Smoke Floor-Malted Single Malt Whisky Review: Tasting Notes
Eye: Golden straw. Barely-there rims and large droplets.
Nose: Very gentle smoke, less punchy than the Kaos. Salty driftwood, smoking fish minus most of the fishiness. Petrichor embers and burnt pretzels.
Palate: Malty and spicy on the tip of my tongue. Smoky caramel, grainy, earthy smoke that settles on the palate with smoking pellets under a side of salmon. Mouthfeel is medium-bodied and oily, a little oak spice, warm soft pretzels in the corners and under the tongue.
Finish: Smoked chocolate, some roasted almonds in their skins, sticky in the mouth’s crevices.
Overall: Very good to great. I think I would have liked this more had I tried it before Kaos, which ultimately made more of an impact. That being said, this is a solid smoky single malt that is just as good as any lightly smoked single malt in Scotland.
Final Rating: 6.5
10 | Insurpassable | Nothing Else Comes Close (Blanton’s Straight from the Barrel)
9 | Incredible | Extraordinary (GTS, Elijah Craig Barrel Proof B518 and B520)
8 | Excellent | Exceptional (12+YO MGP Bourbon, Highland Park Single Barrels)
7 | Great | Well above average (Blanton’s Original, Old Weller Antique, Booker’s)
6 | Very Good | Better than average (Four Roses Small Batch Select, Knob Creek 14+ YO Picks)
5 | Good | Good, solid, ordinary (Elijah Craig Small Batch, Buffalo Trace, Old Grand-Dad Bottled-in-Bond)
4 | Sub-par | Many things I’d rather have (A.D. Laws Four Grain, Compass Box “Oak Cross”)
3 | Bad | Flawed (Iron Smoke Bourbon, Balcones)
2 | Poor | Forced myself to drink it (Buckshee Bourbon and Rye)
1 | Disgusting | Drain pour (Virginia Distilling Co. Cider Cask)
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