It is an open secret that we’re into the fact that distilleries experiment a lot with different maturations and finishes. This Cù Bòcan Creation #1 is a perfect example of having the courage to try something different. Matured/finished on Black Isle Brewery Imperial Stout (28%) and Bacalhôa Moscatel de Setubal casks (72%). Do we need to say more?

The cask types used in this Creation are a whole lot different and rarely used compared to their Signature expression, which we reviewed a few days ago. Please check out that review if you haven’t already, you’ll get a good picture of this wonderful range.

Back to this good looking bottle, we were very curious to say the least about how the Stout/Moscatel marriage would turn out along with the Cù Bòcan character. Here’s how that went:

We got to be honest with you, this is a difficult bottle to taste and write about. As we’ve mentioned before, Dennis tasted all three bottles with the bottles next to him and provided Dion with some samples for a blind tasting to get an objective view. I (Dion) expected a lot more from this particular bottle because of the very interesting casks that were used to create this whisky.

Unfortunately, both of us couldn’t get to the very core of this dram. We most certainly will pour this to our friends and family to get their honest opinion and we definitely will try some more to get the maximum out of it. We do believe it hasn’t reached its full potential yet, so there’s a lot more to come! In a few days we will be back for the Creation #2 review, please stay tuned!