William Hinton 6 Years Aquavit Cask

William Hinton revived agricole-style distilling on Madeira, one of the few places outside the French islands legally permitted the word, working from fresh-pressed sugar cane juice. This six year old is finished in aquavit casks, and the spirit picks up the caraway-and-anise signature of that Nordic spirit.

Matured and then finished in Madeira at 42%, it noses on young wood, anise, cumin and cocoa, with a palate of anise, cumin, green apple and cocoa, and a finish of wood, dark chocolate, dried fruit and allspice. The aquavit influence is the defining feature, lending a herbal, savoury, dill-and-caraway character that sits unusually over the cane base. In honesty it divides opinion, the spice cask reading as either intriguing or a touch dominant depending on taste. For adventurous drinkers curious about a cane juice rum pulled in a very particular direction, it offers something genuinely off the beaten track.