Disclosure: the sample for this review was provided at no cost. Our tasting notes and score are our own.
A little background
Cedar Ridge The QuintEssential Solera Edition Cask Strength is a cask strength American Single Malt whiskey from Cedar Ridge Distillery in Swisher, Iowa. It is handcrafted from pure malted barley, so the mash bill is 100% malted barley. The whiskey starts in ex-bourbon casks and is then finished in a variety of Sherry, Brandy, Wine and oak casks from around the world before being carried into the distillery’s Solera vat. It is bottled at cask strength, 121.7 proof (60.85% ABV), and carries a price of $69.99.
The Quint family has farmed and distilled spirits for generations, and Jeff Quint founded Cedar Ridge in 2005, making it the first licensed distillery in Iowa since Prohibition. After releasing its first batch of whiskey in 2010, Cedar Ridge became a nationally recognized craft distiller, earning honors such as the American Distilling Institute’s 2017 Distiller of the Year and Best American Craft Whiskey at the 2016 New York World Spirits Competition. The distillery manages every step of production from grain to glass, milling grain on-site, distilling its whiskeys twice and aging them in non-temperature-controlled rick houses, where Iowa’s swinging weather pushes the whiskey in and out of the barrel wood and costs an angel’s share of about 18% compared with the industry standard of 12%.
(Tasted neat from a Glencairn Glass)
Color
GoldNose
Brown sugar, apricot, orange, vanilla cream, lemon, mint, and bay leaf.
Palate
Brown sugar, orange cream, pine, oak, cereal grain, and baking spice.
Finish
Orange cream, vanilla, bitter walnuts, pepper, cereal grain, cinnamon, and oak.
In closing
Cedar Ridge QuintEssential Solera Edition Cask Strength opens with a pleasant nose of brown sugar, apricot and orange, softened by vanilla cream and brightened by lemon, mint and an herbal touch of bay leaf. The palate is intense but short, hitting quickly with brown sugar and orange cream before pine, oak, cereal grain and baking spice take over at full 121.7-proof strength. The finish is where this whiskey lingers, running long with orange cream, vanilla, bitter walnuts, pepper, cereal grain and cinnamon over a heavy oak backbone. Although not off-putting, I did find the finish turned quite tannic and drying in its final moments.
The Solera approach, blending American Single Malt finished in Sherry, Brandy, Wine and oak casks into one vat, gives this release a layered fruit-and-oak profile that sets it apart from many of its peers. At $69.99 for a 121.7-proof cask strength whiskey, the value is great, and the pleasant nose and long finish make it well worth a look for anyone who wants a bold, high-proof American Single Malt from Iowa. If you are sensitive to tannic, drying oak, a few drops of water should help soften it.
NOTE: The sample used for this review was provided at no cost courtesy of Cedar Ridge Distillery. We thank them for the sample and for allowing us to review it with no strings attached.
Cedar Ridge The Quintessential Solera Edition Cask Strength
121.7 Proof
Please enjoy responsibly. Never drink and drive.
