Review: Apera cask whiskies – veterans and newcomers

Luke McCarthy -
Whisky Reviews
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On tasting: Manly Spirits Co. Coastal Stone (First Release), Tria Prima Enchantress (Batch #1), Starward Solera, Bakery Hill Eldorado (standard and cask strength), Chief’s Son 900 Single Cask #121 and Black Gate Apera Vatting.

I constantly have industry folks get in touch to tell me how much they hate the term ‘apera’. I wrote about the subject last year, exploring the use of apera and tawny on Australian whisky labels.

I suggested that producers were missing an opportunity to promote the distinctiveness of their work when the vast majority of our whiskies are matured in Australian apera and tawny casks. Dozens of local whisky producers have now adopted the terms that were introduced in 2010, while a number still use sherry and port. It’ll be interesting to see how it shakes out over the next few years.

I can understand both sides of the argument, but I do think apera and tawny are more interesting and informative for consumers, even if they’re not familiar with them. It’s also a great conversation starter and point of difference, especially for international enthusiasts, who might never have tried Australian fortified wines.

Taste through the McWilliams and Seppelstfield apera ranges – the two wineries where a lot of Australia’s apera casks began their lives – and you’ll find corresponding flavours to Spanish sherry. Most Aussie wine pros point out that apera is often a bit fruitier and sweeter than sherry, and I personally find a pronounced clovey spice and nutty funk to apera cask whiskies, especially if the casks originated from McWilliams (we’ll save the apera deep-dive for another time).

The great thing about the line-up below is that you see how different Aussie producers are approaching the use of these casks. Whether full maturation or finish, small cask or large, apera casks rapidly make their influence felt in Australian conditions, and producers are exploring ways to balance that influence.

Of course, there’s a couple dozen Australian ‘sherry’ and apera whiskies now out there to try, and this is only a small round-up of some new and established producers working in this style. It’s also our first taste of Tria Prima and Manly Spirits Co. and I’m looking forward to more from them in future.

  • Manly Spirits Co. Coastal Stone Sherry Cask Single Malt Whisky (First Release)
    The Stats
    • ABV: 46%
    • Price Band: $ $ $ $ $
    • Style: Single malt whisky
    • Production Story: Distilled at Manly Spirits Co. (double distilled through 1000 and 1500 litre pots, both with tall necks) and this first release is a vatting of whisky matured for four years in 100 litre apera casks and three years in 225 litre apera casks. Released September 2021.
    • Location: Sydney, NSW
    • Score: 81
    Nose
    Shortbread, hints of mince pie and dark fruitcake. Nutty amontillado and vanilla. Light, fresh and subtle.
    Palate
    Nice look at the spirit here - banana and orchard fruits. The casks bring on cocoa nibs and cloves, and it gently grips as it moves along, delivering the fruitcake promised on the nose. Less malt forward than a lot of other Aussie malts, quite clean and refined.
    Finish
    A little short, with a lick of apera and apricot.
    Comments
    A smart, approachable whisky. It's got all the flavours you'd expect from an apera cask malt, it's just not as oaky a package as many of its contemporaries - the vatting of different component casks has balanced out the apera influence nicely. Maybe lacking a little in complexity and depth, but that will pick up in future releases.
  • Tria Prima Enchantress Single Malt Whisky (Batch #1)
    The Stats
    • ABV: 46%
    • Price Band: $ $ $ $ $
    • Style: Single malt whisky
    • Production Story: Distilled at Tria Prima Distillery (double distilled through a Burns Welding pot still) and matured in two 100 litre McWilliams apera casks for just over two years.
    • Location: Mount Barker, SA
    • Score: 85
    Nose
    Toffee and brown sugar. Plenty of wood, but it's of the delicious kind. Dark chocolate and caramel fudge, hints of varnish, but pleasant, nothing resinous. Spice rack, figs and marmalade.
    Palate
    Again, oak-forward here. Raisins, classic apera cloves, and that hint of varnish on the nose lifts into strawberry creams and raspberries. Sits nicely on the palate, not overly thick, chunky or tannic - a well balanced combo of flavours.
    Finish
    Medium-bodied. Persistent and rich, with some grip and wine at the tail.
    Comments
    The more I tried this, the more I liked it. Great balance, the cask doesn't dominate at any point and the spirit still has a say. Remarkable that it's only a bit over two years old. Impressive first release.
  • Starward Solera Single Malt Whisky
    The Stats
    • ABV: 43%
    • Price Band: $ $ $ $ $
    • Style: Single malt whisky
    • Production Story: Distilled at New World Whisky Distillery, matured in apera casks, and then married into a solera vat, where each batch is progressively siphoned off and new mature barrels added.
    • Location: Melbourne, VIC
    • Score: 86
    Nose
    Paddle Pop Choc Banana, caramel and pears, hints of grape must. Floral and perfumey.
    Palate
    Sweeter than I remember. Much fruitier than most Aussie malts in this style. Hints of grip and cranberry from the casks, but it never strays to bitterness or woodiness.
    Finish
    Some older, darker, oakier stuff lurking at the back here.
    Comments
    It's been fascinating to taste the development of Solera over the years. It's got more nuance and depth these days, and it's gathered up a lot of complexity with time. Where once Solera was criticised by some for measuring up poorly to Australia's big, heavy, pointy malts, now, it's iconic in the Australian context, with several distillers practicing the same method. This is the OG right here.
  • Bakery Hill Eldorado Single Malt Whisky
    The Stats
    • ABV: 48%
    • Price Band: $ $ $ $ $
    • Style: Single malt whisky
    • Production Story: Distilled at Bakery Hill Distillery and initially matured in American oak ex-Bourbon casks for three years. It was then transferred to Seppelstfield apera casks for 12 months and then further matured for an additional year in ex-Bourbon casks. Bottled June 2021. 300 bottles in total.
    • Location: Melbourne, VIC
    • Score: 85
    Nose
    Nutty and jammy. Walnuts and honey on porridge. Lemon and flamed orange, grass clippings and an earthy, green malt vibe.
    Palate
    Thick and malty, with an interesting nutty grunge, reminiscent of some older, funky sherries. Just a hint of earthy smoke, and that green, almost unmalted barley note lingers.
    Finish
    Malty and rich. Earthy and spicy.
    Comments
    I reviewed a progress sample of this whisky last year, and that green note has stubbornly hung around despite the extended maturation, which has definitely added more depth and finesse. Love seeing an apera finish, allows for more control in balancing the influence of the cask. Don't think this has the same level of complexity and clarity of Bakery Hill's ex-Bourbon cask malts, but sherry cask fans will enjoy this.
  • Bakery Hill Eldorado Single Malt Whisky Cask Strength
    The Stats
    • ABV: 60%
    • Price Band: $ $ $ $ $
    • Style: Single malt whisky
    • Production Story: As above, just bottled at 60% here.
    • Location: Melbourne, VIC
    • Score: 84
    Nose
    Less of the nutty funk. Big apera cloves, spice rack and super thick and spicy.
    Palate
    More brash, malty and woody again. The higher ABV masks some of that greeness and heroes the fudgy apera character.
    Finish
    Feels richer and thicker here too.
    Comments
    It's been a while since we looked at a standard strength vs cask strength bottling, hence the inclusion here. Really enjoyable at a higher ABV. Comes across maltier and thicker, but the higher booze masks some of the nutty, fruity complexity that the lower ABV reveals. For that reason, I probably prefer the 48%, but it's a tight one.
  • Chief's Son Distillery 900 Single Cask #121
    The Stats
    • ABV: 49.4%
    • Price Band: $ $ $ $ $
    • Style: Single malt whisky
    • Production Story: Wash from Mornington Peninsula Brewery, portions of which contain specialty malts, and Scottish peated malt is also added. Distilled at Chief's Son Distillery and matured in a single ex-Seppeltsfield fortified wine cask. 147 bottles in total.
    • Location: Somerville, VIC
    • Score: 84
    Nose
    Roasted malts and cooked green vegies in butter. A savoury, almost cumin edge to it. Quite a bit smokier than expected, with bacon and paprika. Cask influence seems surprisingly subtle. Some sweeter red berries and fruits with time.
    Palate
    Much oilier, thicker and richer than the nose would suggest. Burnt toast, and the malts really kick on from the mid-palate.
    Finish
    Long and big. Hefty. Smoke and cereal lingering.
    Comments
    Found this a bit all over the place on the first couple passes, but once it settles it's a rich brute of a malt. Much bigger and smokier than expected, and the cask influence was less pronounced than others in this line-up, giving you a good look at everything that's going on. A huge array of flavours to chew on, though I wonder if more time in cask would've helped to better integrate the whole.
  • Black Gate Apera Vatting Single Malt Whisky
    The Stats
    • ABV: 47%
    • Price Band: $ $ $ $ $
    • Style: Single malt whisky
    • Production Story: Distilled at Black Gate Distillery between December 2015 and April 2016. Matured in 100 litre McWilliams apera casks (BG040, BG048 and BG049) which were vatted together and bottled in August 2020. 634 bottles in total.
    • Location: Mendooran, NSW
    • Score: 90
    Nose
    Toffee and creme caramel. Lifted fruits, orange poppyseed cake and dark cherries.
    Palate
    Rich and creamy. Yum. Aniseed and a hint of earthy smoke. Not as syrupy and wine-laden as other apera cask Aussie malts in this style. This is fresh and fruity, but still has weight and texture. Great marriage of flavours, and love the bottling strength.
    Finish
    Yum.
    Comments
    Apera casks marry up brilliantly with Black Gate's spirit. That bold, burnt caramel sweetness in the Black Gate new make counters the drier, spicier apera influence that often dominates more refined distillates. This is so rich and fruity, but impeccably balanced. Love to get this side by with some top sherried Scottish drams.
How We Score
Luke McCarthy
Luke McCarthy is the editor and publisher of Oz Whisky Review. An independent writer, author and drinks columnist, Luke's written about whisky and spirits for numerous Australian and international publications and is a judge at the Australian Distilled Spirits Awards. His book, The Australian Spirits Guide, the first to tackle the history and resurgence of the Australian spirits industry, was published in 2016 by Hardie Grant Books.