Finch Barrel Proof 8 Jahre - Schwäbischer Highland Whisky - 54%

Jim Murray´s Whisky Bible 2019 – 92 pts: *Nose 23 seems as though some wine finishing has been indulged in here: port springs to mind as there is a just-so spice nip accompanying the grape; superb weight and balance; taste 23 at last! A Finch with a texture that does it justice. Heather honey and muscovado sugars combine brilliantly to accompany the fruitcake; the spices initially take no prisoners, but calm down…; finish 22.5 evidence of more than one cask at play here as a light liquorice tag offers extra depth to the vanilla and fruity butterscotch; balance and overall complexity 23.5 I think Finch have cracked it. Previous bottlings had been a 43% abv, allowing the oils to shatter and the narrative of the whisky to become disjointed when the water was added for reduction. This whisky is far happier at full strength… and now so am I…*
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Jim Murray´s Whisky Bible 2021 – 90.5 pts: *Nose 22.5, a bold and complex nose of mixed grain – barley malt and wheat, I think – which bind to form a deep, resonating cord – especially when the tannins join forces; taste 23, a finch uncaged here, as the delivery is massive! This is huge, but always in control of the dark sugars and lighter ulmo honey which rumble magnificently; the midpoint is doused in vanilla and caramel; finish 22, spicier now and does a god job of diverting the attention away from the light feint; balance and overall complexity 23, As I taste this, a greenfinch calls gutterally, wheezily, to its prospective mate, while nearby a goldfinch is more than happy to use its metallic red face to dazzle, topping it off with its jaunty, equally metallic trill for good measure. Meanwhile, in the glass, this Finch entices you with its song of alluring ulmo honey and caramels.*