Santa Fe Spirits – 5 Year Old Batch 1 (That Boutique-y Whisky Company) (50cl, 65.7%)

This is a 5 year old American single malt from Santa Fe Spirits in New Mexico, bottled as Batch 1 of the USA Series by That Boutique-y Whisky Company. It comes from an outturn of 284 bottles at a natural cask strength of 65.7%, in a 50cl bottle. Thirty per cent of the malted barley is smoked over mesquite, a New Mexico wood also used for grilling. The whisky is not chill-filtered and has natural colour. The nose offers stewed sweet apples, baking spices and caramel, with a hint of fermented fruit. On the palate pepper arrives first, then apples with toffee, woody spice, ginger and cardamom, with liquorice in the background. The finish is peppery and increasingly dry, with delicate wood smoke.