Us Heit Frysk Hynder

‘In the Frissian whisky distillery Us Heit in Bolward (Netherland) a very special single malt whisky is produced, called Frysk Hynder, named after the fabled Frissian horse’. That’s basically what it says on the official website welcome page. Beer brewer Aart van der Linden started distilling whisky in 2002. They used malted barley from their own maltings (the wort is the same as the one used for their beer, minus the hop, of course). They use double distillation, just like most Scottish distilleries. The spirit is put to sleep in casks that previously held sherry, wine or brandy. Every bottle get a hand written label mentioning the malt type, name of the mashman, distillation and bottling date, cask type and ABV. I tasted a Frysk Hynder from an Oloroso sherry cask, distilled on 7th January 2006 (my 36th birthday, incidentally) and bottled on 2nd February 2009.

The nose is fruity with liquorice, but not much else. Reminds me a bit of Pineau de Charentes, actually, with some malt in the background. A trifle sharp.

Though creamy on the palate at first, it soon turns sharp. Too sharp. This is clearly bottled at a (too) young age. The sherry has not been able to leave it’s mark properly. I get (a lot of) caramel and some cloves. A bit of raisins. Not overly complex.

The finish is not long and a continuation of the palate: spicy fruit.

Aart van der Linde only produces 77 bottles a day (what a weird number, eh?) and therefore this whisky is something of a gadget.