McConnell's 5 Years Sherry Cask Finish (46%)

McConnell's 5 Years Sherry Cask Finish is an Irish whisky from Belfast, bottled at 46% ABV and not chill-filtered. It spends five years in first-fill ex-bourbon casks before a finish in Oloroso sherry casks. The McConnell's brand dates from 1776 in Belfast. It declined in the 1930s and is now being brought back by the Belfast Distillery Company, who keep the old spelling of whisky without the e. The nose shows dried figs and redcurrants, Christmas spices such as nutmeg and cinnamon, dark chocolate and a hint of fresh leather. The palate has demerara sugar, ripe dark cherries and black raspberries, then bittersweet chocolate and red apples. The finish is lingering oak with fine leather and gentle clove.