Teeling 12 Year Old 2008 Single Cask for Members of Whiskybase

Whiskybase is probably the best known online database and since a few years they also have a whisky shop and often bottle casks for their members. This is one of those that they selected from the warehouses of the Irish producer Teeling. It's a sherry cask that matured for 12 years and bottled at cask strength, yielding 234 bottles. Guess who gave me the sample? Benny of course, Teeling fan extraordinair.

The first impression I get when I put my nose in the glass is rather weak. It smells a tad young, has some cardboard and lime juice, graphite and ferns, but not much else. After about five minutes in the glass I also get some vanilla, some young apples, gooseberries and a soft note of fresh peach. Leave it to breathe for 10 minutes and then it turns beautiful. It takes a bit of patience.

Nicely oily, but immediately piquant. Chili pepper, ginger and vanilla or supported by apples, ferns, and the juice of young twigs. I really have to search for the sherry cask. Even with the second hopeful sip I am still left guessing.

The finish is a bit funky, but I cannot quite pinpoint why.

This clearly needs a bit more time, especially on the nose. If you are able to give it that time, it turns out to be rather special Irish whiskey. Not the easiest Teeling i have tried so far.