Project Frankencask

Andrew Smith that we also know as little brown dog from his whisky adventures with a little (gorgeous) brown dog has sent over a sample of his project frankencask. The sample bottle states that it is created to celebrate the 21st anniversary of the Arran malt and that the frankencask is a single cask built up from individual staves from two different oak species and a total of twelve cask types. An 1996 refill sherry Arran single malt filled the frankencask and spend its last months maturing and interacting with the different woods. This is what he can tell us about his project... 

"Staves from virgin Hungarian oak, virgin American oak, palo cortado sherry, px sherry, white port, ruby port, bas armagnac, brandy, beaumes de venise, bourbon, calvados and refill peated whisky all in one cask with the intention of creating a complex and slightly schizophrenic single malt. The bottles are labelled with copper foil and the cartons are real oak veneer with copper staples. Using 2.5 liter casks, one European Hungarian and one American white oak. As it was a small scale I cheated by soaking individual staves in tubs of the different alcohols. Admittedly a bit crude and a bit of a cheat but only way I could do it in a small scale without buying 12 different casks. Staves were seasoned for 3-5 months. Some split but most are fine and then put together like a jigsaw using the same bands. The idea has been bugging me for years after a visit to Speyside cooperage where European oak sherry casks were being repaired with American white oak staves and the coopers thought this made the best casks. I just wanted to take this mixing wood type idea up a notch"

On the nose I find deep rich fruit cake, ginger and marzipan notes. Hints of wood, thick dark fruit jam and caramel syrup sweetness. Raisins, dried fruits, plums, dark summer fruits, honey, orange and dark chocolate candy. Powdered sugar, hint of cinnamon, toffee and demerara sugar. These notes from the nose come back clearly on the palate with a good dash of coffee, cherry and chocolate. Sweet dense Christmas cake notes and hint of rose pedals and soft other floral notes. Thick and syrupy, the sherry and port had clearly a lot of influence. You can feel there are some more lighter and softer fruit notes underneath like red apples, red berries and raspberries, but they are struggling to break through. A medium length and very warm and sweet finish. A lovely dram all together but wondering if the combination is maybe too heavy and the influence of some of the staves been to much maybe? Wondering if when you not take 12 different cask types but just a couple if the separate influence will be more clearer? With maybe a younger malt or even spirit to fill it? Thanks Andrew for sharing this project! Great to try!