Westward American Single Malt Cask Strength

Single malt whiskey, cask strength 125 proof, purchased in Washington State, June 2024, $115. Tasting neat. Brown copper color and strong coating legs in the glass. Nose is chocolate malt, dark stone fruit, vanilla, and a whiff of ethanol in the far back. In the mouth, tannic oak and leather open the taste, with stewed fruit, vanilla, raisins, cocoa powder, graham crackers, and sweet malted milk. An ethanol bloom follows, but is modest for the proof. The mouthfeel is rich and coating. The finish turns dry spicy and orange citrus, and leaves a long-lasting tingle, and then later a sweetness that overwrites the sour. Ice tames the tannic/ethanol profiles and heightens the grain sweetness, making this more typical of other single malts. An interesting flavor profile, more tannic and dried fruit than grain and sugar sweet, but consistent with the malted barley, beer, and new charred oak barrels that are the production profile of this distillery. Distiller reviews indicate polarized opinions. I'm a fan of what Westward is producing, and the unusual flavors of this cask strength version of their single malt. Complex enough to give you something to think about while sipping. Went back to check reviews of this bottle. Whisky Advocate rated it #5 in their Top 20 of 2022, and BreakingBourbon gave it a 4/5 very good rating.

Store Pick from Total Wine and More, Gilbert AZ. Nose is pungent with rum soaked fruit cake, vanilla custard, egg cream, golden raisin, rubber, pineapple, and papaya. Inviting enough, but lacks balance. Ethanol is very mild. Palate matches the nose well with lots of fruit notes as described above. Some hot butterscotch creeps in but the overall experience is spicy fruit. Is this a high ABV brandy? Because it tastes like it. Some barrel influence would be welcome, but it just isn’t there. Finish is hot and prickly with…you know what? I could try to be creative here but honestly it just tastes like unattenuated alcohol. Really beat up my tongue after a while and gave me heartburn to boot. Mouthfeel is medium bodied and neither slick nor grainy. Oof. I paid $109 for this hot mess express. Needless to say never again. If this is a store pick, I’d hate to see the regular. The closest comparison to this is Stranahans Single Malt, which does a similar fruity single malt profile with much more finesse. This just seems clumsy in comparison. Going to be a struggle to finish the bottle.

Nose: Toffee, juniper berries, butterscotch Palate: Fruit forward with raspberries, caramel, and more toffee and butterscotch Finish: Caramel and chocolate, medium finish Amazing whiskey that is only shy from perfect as i thought it was missing a viscosity or oiliness that would have made it a homerun. Cant think of a better American single malt for the price and proof

One of the strangest american single malts ive tried yet. Id claim balcones is the best asm. This is polar opposite of balcones in flavor profile. For me the main flavor of westward is oolong or green tea, followed by a strange bubblegum, and some young whiskey harshness. Probably my least favorite american single malt distiller.

The core Westward release is packed with flavor at 46%, so you’d expect a cask strength version to dial things up a notch or three. The Astor Wines pick I tried was a bit much out the bottle at 62.5%, but diluted to nearer 50% it tasted as balanced as the regular strength version but with all the right notes amplified nicely.

Dark fruit and raisins prominent on the nose, with some maltiness and molasses present. The malt really comes through on the palate. The high proof has a good burn to it and the finish is long. Has the sweetness of a bourbon from the new oak barrels, but also the fruitiness of an un peated Scotch. Fantastic.