This week I posted about the recent changes in Mackmyra and the end of their long-standing Seasonal and Moments series. Whilst a sale is on for those final Moments and stocks of the final few Seasonals are available, it seems like an appropriate time to post about the very last of their Seasonal releases: Limousin.
This single malt Swedish whisky gets its name from having been matured partially in French Limousin oak casks that previously held Cognac from Maison Ferrand. This recipe has then been married with Mackmyra whisky aged across a variety of cask types including Oloroso casks, American oak casks, bourbon casks, Swedish oak casks, and raspberry wine casks.
When the sun is just above the horizon and the sunbeams are travelling low, a magical light appears that only mother nature can deliver. Time stops and you don’t think about bills, social media or what to eat for dinner – You are absolutely present and at the same time you almost forget that you exist. You are a small piece of the puzzle in a perfect moment.
Forever captured by artists and photographers alike, the magic of the golden hour over the French countryside is the inspiration for Mackmyra Limousin.
Mackmyra
The final spirit has been captured at Mackmyra’s (previously?) preferred strength of 46.1% ABV and is still available at the time of writing for RRP £62 GBP per 70cl bottle.
Nose
Dusty oats and barley are the first sensations to appear followed by a fruity trio of apple, white grapes, and figs. There’s a good biscuity/baking smell of brandy snaps too, and a final oaky bite, with almost a rye spice to it.
Taste
Initial sweetness coats the tongue with honey, toffee, apple, and pear. Then the spices start to play their hand with a buttery pastry building to a cinnamon, nutmeg, and ginger combination with quite a strong final oaky flavour. (Strong hot toddy vibes!)
Finish
Quite drying and as the oaky spice fizzles away slowly it leaves behind those apple strudel style sensations of sweetness and baking spices.
Verdict
Really quite enjoyable. Having recently had to have a few, the leading honey, malt, and cinnamon flavours really did bring hot toddies to mind. Maybe this is a medicinal Mackmyra.
There are seemingly loads of elements from the different cask maturations that have been combined here but they’ve sort of balanced themselves out. If anything, it is one of the more straightforward Mackmyras – but a solid one nonetheless – at least for the Seasonal releases.
That said, it was not especially cognac like but weird that without tasting notes I got grapes and brandy tasting notes on top of the signature Mackmyra apple and pear style. More oaky too than their standard fair, whether that is down to the limousin casks or maybe just all that variety of casks displaying their common element.
Overall, a pretty accomplished meld of influences. It does feel older than other releases too but maybe that is down to the stronger oak notes and oily/buttery texture. Never too light or heavy as a sipper. The end of the road for their seasonal range and good one to honour on a high. Let’s see what the future brings.
M
Sample disclosure: Please note that this sample was received as part of a press release pack and promotion for the release of the Limousin single malt whisky directly from Mackmyra. All tasting notes and thoughts on this are my own however and are intended as an honest, fair, and independent review of the whisky itself. Please drink responsibly. Please drink wisely.
whisky unplugged 