Review: Bakery Hill Single Malt Whisky range

Luke McCarthy -
Whisky Reviews
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On tasting: Bakery Hill Classic Malt, Bakery Hill Peated Cask Strength, Bakery Hill Double Wood Cask Strength, Bakery Hill Sovereign Smoke, Bakery Hill Peated 11 Year old, and a sherry and muscat barrel sample

When times are tough, many of us look for solace in consistency, permanence. Whether that’s an old friend, a book you’ve read a dozen times, or a TV series that numbs the craziness of the outside world, we’ve all got our comfort triggers, our old reliables.

For Australian whisky fans, Bakery Hill has probably been the most reliable, consistent (and overlooked) whisky producer of the last 15 years. Since the late 90s, when David Baker first kicked off his crazy plan to make Australian single malt to rival the Scots, it’s been a hard grind. But once the core range of Bakery Hill whiskies was established, year on year, without fuss, they’ve never missed a beat.

Full disclosure, I’ve been chatting to David Baker about whisky since I first met him back in 2012. His son Andrew Baker is also a great mate – we play in the same team for the mighty Melbourne Cricket Club (just don’t ask us about the recent Grand Final). Like everyone, I haven’t been immune to wanting a bit more certainty in these ridiculous times, and that’s probably why I recently revisited some Bakery Hill whiskies that I know are reliably brilliant. They’re made by meticulous, determined people who don’t rush things out, who take their time and don’t cut corners.

Of course, judge what I’m saying and the reviews below against that history. But as someone who’s tasted Bakery Hill whisky and presented it in blind tastings for over seven years, I actually think the strike rate and complexity of the bottlings has hit a new level in recent times. These days, you rarely find that youthful prickle that occasionally poked its head out in the past.

Clearly, that’s because the ethos driving the Baker’s has also been: don’t bottle it if it’s not up to scratch. Again that’s evidenced below – the sherry and muscat samples reviewed here have been re-racked and put back on the shelf after punters in tastings told them they didn’t quite make the grade.

Patience and perseverance: it’s what we’re all looking for a dose of at the moment. Thankfully, we’ve got the perfect whiskies for that.

 

  • Bakery Hill Classic Malt
    The Stats
    • ABV: 46%
    • Price Band: $ $ $ $ $
    • Style: Single malt whisky
    • Production Story: Distilled at Bakery Hill Distillery from unpeated Victorian malt and matured in either 100 or 220 litre ex-Bourbon casks for between 6-8 years. Each bottling is from a single cask.
    • Location: Melbourne, VIC
    • Score: 88
    Nose
    Straight away, cereal. Barley sugar, fresh malt and a slight bready note. Then fruit, pear, apricot, green apple and honey. The cask adds vanilla, spice and cinnamon, and there's just a hint of straw at the back.
    Palate
    It starts oily, the cereal and vanilla notes follow the nose, and then caramel, almonds, malt and figs. Great texture.
    Finish
    Medium to long, quite thick, and the malt really follows through.
    Comments
    One of Australia's benchmark single malts. In terms of consistency, well, has there been a more consistent, constantly available Australian malt over the last 8 years? Great structure, and intelligent maturation in casks that work brilliantly with the spirit.
  • Bakery Hill Peated Malt Cask Strength
    The Stats
    • ABV: 60%
    • Price Band: $ $ $ $ $
    • Style: Single malt whisky
    • Production Story: Distilled at Bakery Hill Distillery from lightly peated Scottish malt and matured in either 100 or 220 litre ex-Bourbon casks for between 6-8 years. Each bottling is from a single cask.
    • Location: Melbourne, VIC
    • Score: 92
    Nose
    Again, the cereal and malt, but here it's met with an earthy smoke and sea salt. Similar fruits to the Classic, with an extra layer of spice (cocoa), apple pie, wood smoke and petrichor.
    Palate
    Big and oily. Vanilla, muesli, ash and a grassy, peat kiln note. But the peat remains subtle, never dominates. With water, citrus, spice and caramel fudge.
    Finish
    Long and earthy, with the smoke and malt lingering.
    Comments
    A belter of a cask this one. The peated cask strength has long been the secret favourite of Bakery Hill fans, and some of the casks bottled in recent years have shown even better integration and complexity.
  • Bakery Hill Double Wood Cask Strength
    The Stats
    • ABV: 60%
    • Price Band: $ $ $ $ $
    • Style: Single malt whisky
    • Production Story: Unpeated malt (Victorian) initially matured in an ex-Bourbon cask and then finished in a virgin French oak cask.
    • Location: Melbourne, VIC
    • Score: 91
    Nose
    Surprisingly subtle on the nose for the abv. All the classic vanilla, citrus and caramel, hint of smoke, and the French oak adds an intriguing spice – cloves and masala chai.
    Palate
    Ooff, delicious. Super creamy, with vanilla, chocolate eclairs, barley sugar, and cinnamon tea cake. Great balance.
    Finish
    Very oily and creamy and keeps on going.
    Comments
    I've always had a soft spot for the Double Wood. Complex, but subtle, with a fascinating interplay between oak and malt. It often gets overlooked, but at cask strength (which is not currently available), boy, what a stunner.
  • Bakery Hill Peated Malt 11 Year Old (Barrel Sample)
    The Stats
    • ABV: 50%
    • Price Band: $ $ $ $ $
    • Style: Single malt whisky
    • Production Story: First full production of peated spirit at Bakery Hill (Scottish malt), where all the mashing and fermentation was conducted on site (before this, wash was bought from Mountain Goat). Matured in an ex-Bourbon cask for 11 years.
    • Location: Melbourne, VIC
    • Score: 93
    Nose
    Wow. Very estery, soft earthy smoke, and a floral guaiacol note. Honey comb, raspberries, forrest floor, and a green malt character - think older Irish pot still (Redbreast).
    Palate
    Impeccable balance. Smoke mingles with a spicy oak character, then creme fraiche, macadamia and wood smoke.
    Finish
    Long, nutty and malty, with the smoke lingering.
    Comments
    Some brilliant Highland and Japanese malts come to mind with this. It's new territory for Australian whisky. I can't recall another lightly peated Australian malt with this level of elegance and maturity.
  • Bakery Hill Sovereign Smoke - Defiantly Peated
    The Stats
    • ABV: 50%
    • Price Band: $ $ $ $ $
    • Style: Single malt whisky
    • Production Story: Distilled from a mash of Belgian peated barley and matured in two 220 litre ex-Bourbon casks for 8 years.
    • Location: Melbourne, VIC
    • Score: 92
    Nose
    Geez, very different to the standard peated BH. Ashy smoke, with a salty, maritime character. Then ginger and citrus, and a barnyard (lambic?) cereal note.
    Palate
    Big, sweet peat. Dark chocolate, tobacco, creamy muscles in Guinness, and the earthy smoke is balanced out perfectly by the vanilla and oak from the cask.
    Finish
    Eating shortbread in front of a peat fire.
    Comments
    Just goes to show the importance of peat location and malting. The Bakery Hill elegance tries to tame this, but the grungy malt just takes over. One of the boldest and most complex Australian peated malts released.
  • Bakery Hill Single Malt Sherry Cask (Barrel Sample)
    The Stats
    • ABV: 52%
    • Price Band: $ $ $ $ $
    • Style: Single malt whisky
    • Production Story: Unpeated spirit, initially matured in an ex-Bourbon cask before being transferred to 100 litre ex-apera cask.
    • Location: Melbourne, VIC
    • Score: 81
    Nose
    Prickly upfront. Jam, raspberries, dark fruitcake and apple core, and lots of cask influence, prominent woodiness.
    Palate
    Taken a lot of wine and tannin from the cask. Thick and syrupy. Fruitcake, figs, dates. It's coming together, but it's just a bit hot.
    Finish
    Dense, very woody, with apera and wine lingering.
    Comments
    A bit out of whack. There's some enjoyable fruity and syrupy notes, but the cask has quickly grabbed a hold of this.
  • Bakery Hill Single Malt Muscat Cask (Barrel Sample)
    The Stats
    • ABV: 50%
    • Price Band: $ $ $ $ $
    • Style: Single malt whisky
    • Production Story: Lightly peated spirit, matured in an ex-Bourbon cask and then transferred to a 200 litre ex-Muscat barrel from Pimpernel Winery in the Yarra Valley where it's been resting for over 12 months.
    • Location: Melbourne, VIC
    • Score: 85
    Nose
    Intially, treacle and prunes, sultana, plenty of muscat and a sort of botrytis riesling character.
    Palate
    Mezcal, beef brisket, and tannin to start. Hot sauce and ribs, and then the syrup, figs and fruitcake from the cask.
    Finish
    Rich, salty and winey.
    Comments
    There's a lot of fun to be had with this, and I suspect it'll become highly sought-after by fans of the big rich and smoky style when it eventually gets released. Individually, some of the flavours here are tasty and fascinating, but it's not quite together. Yet!
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.