Celtique Connexion Highland 1996 Affinage Quarts de Chaumes

The Celtic Whisky Compagnie is a company by Jean and Martine Donnay, who also own the Breton Glann ar Mor distillery and the still to be erected Gartbreck distillery on Islay. Their Celtique Connexion is a range of single malts that were distilled and matured in Scotland, but got an extra maturation (or finish is you like) in France on wine casks. This Highlanders from 1996 got a finish on Quart de Chaumes casks. Quart de Chaumes is a wine region in the Loire valley. It is a sweet white wine. I wonder what that has done to this Highland single malt.

The nose is grand and very fruity. Complex as well. Agrums play around with cherries, raisins, baked apples, stewed pears with a hint of pineapple and green banana. There is also a drop of balsamico and sniffing tobacco, which makes me think the malt matured on a sherry cask at first. Nice trace of woodsmoke. What a pleasant surprice!

It is silky soft on the palate. It starts off with something sour. Think agrums. A touch of candy. Wine gums. But then the fruit kicks in with a vengeance, albeit of the dried variety (the fruit, not the vengeance – what am I saying?). So it turns sweet again. Caramel, maybe even some candied sugar. It also offers a nice salty edge. This is quite impressive.

The finish is fairly long and spicy. It remains sweet until the death.

I have no idea (well, maybe I do) what the influence of the wine cask has been, but this is an impressive release. Just under 100 EUR. Fine digestive. Recommended!