Rampur – Single Malt Asava Bourbon Barrels & Cabernet Sauvignon Red Wine Cask (70cl, 45%)

Rampur Asava is an Indian single malt in a 70cl bottle at 45%, non-chill-filtered and natural in colour. It matures first in American bourbon barrels and is then finished in casks that held Indian Cabernet Sauvignon. The wine casks come from a small winery in Maharashtra, and the whisky spends a further seven to eight months in them. Master blender Anup Barik wanted to explore how the dark fruit of an Indian Cabernet Sauvignon would change the whisky. The nose opens with tropical fruit, apricot, blackberry and plum, then a little tobacco and gentle spice. The palate is velvety, with manuka honey, spicy oak and vanilla, balanced by the dryness of the red wine. The finish is medium in length, warming and soft.