Moving northward from our local distillery booths at Whiskies of the World San Francisco, perennial favorite Westward Whiskey came down to the event from Oregon again in 2021. Widely known as one of the leaders of the American craft distillation movement, they've always impressed with their selection each year. Let's take a closer look!
Westward Single Malt
The original flagship of the Westward lineup, this whiskey consists purely of malted barley aged in new American Oak barrels. The nose is sour with a heavy grain influence, really bringing the barley to the forefront. The palate has a medium mouthfeel, leading with that distinctively smooth barley taste with a nice, almost caramel-like sweetness underneath. The medium-length finish is mellow, balancing sweetness up front with a bit of spice on the back of the tongue.
Westward Single Malt Pinot Noir Cask
Leaning into their Oregon heritage, Westward sourced French Oak wine casks from local Pinot Noir producers for this special finish. The nose is quite interesting, leading with strong ethanol vapors that hide red berry notes underneath. The wood influence comes through firmly on the palate, adding a subdued oakiness that's almost smoky in nature. That essence comes through as a light smoke on the medium-short finish to round out the experience.
Westward Single Malt Stout Cask
Westward has cultivated a strong relationship with brewers around the Northwest, and this whiskey is their expression of that relationship, aging for 12 months in Stout casks from those breweries. The barrel's influence comes through right away with sour notes on the nose under a medium ethanol level. The mouthfeel is surprisingly light, with the barley influence leading on the palate over a mild sourness and just a hint of caramel. The finish seems short at first, but some spice lingers a bit longer at the end.
Westward Single Malt Cask Strength
After the success of their classic single malt, it's no wonder that Westward tried its hand at a cask strength expression. The nose explodes with that barley grain right away, with less ethanol than you'd expect at this proof. Under that barley is a slight sweetness, evoking thoughts of freshly roasted apples and peaches topped with caramelized brown sugar. The palate is a surprising, but welcome departure from its lower-proof cousin, leaning into a spice-forward experience that incorporates some of the apple from the nose. These flavors quickly transition to a long finish that's quite spicy, sparking heat on the tip of the tongue.
Westward Single Malt Single Barrel
While Westward offers many single barrels to different retailers, the bottle we tried was "Full Proof Limited Release 2021". The barley on the nose was accented beautifully with chocolate and banana notes. The palate was nice and warm, further centering the barley characteristic. The finish was long, with cinnamon spice building slowly as time passed.
Westward is another one of those distilleries that has nailed its core offering, making every variation thereof a truly exciting expression of their own unique personality. We'd be happy drinking any of these whiskies again, but our favorite this year was the Single Barrel. We can't wait to see what new evolution of the Westward spirit will be awaiting us in 2022!