High Bank Midnight Cask

A little background

Midnight Cask is the latest (and greatest?) release from High Bank Distillery Co. in Columbus, Ohio. Years ago when it was first released, High Bank Master Distiller, Adam Hines, developed an affinity for Basil Hayden’s Dark Rye, but still felt that it was missing a certain “something.” Adam started blending different port wines into his barrel proof whiskey. After trying dozens of different port wines for more than 6 months, he actually went back and chose the very first one he had ever blended: a port wine from Australia. Midnight Cask was supposed to have been released last Winter, but due to the government shutdown, the label approval was delayed for 3 months. Adam did not feel as though this was a Spring whiskey (I would tend to agree), so he waited another 8 months to release it. Midnight Cask does not have an age statement, and it sits at a cool 82 proof. This bottle can be found for $48 MSRP.

(Tasted neat from a Halo Glass)

Color

Amber

Nose

The nose is deep, dark, and beautiful. It is full of rich aromas such as dark raisins, port berries, rye spice, and dates. Other dried red-skin fruits such as plums, dried red currants, and prunes come onto the scene as well, combining for an aroma that makes you want to start sipping it immediately. Bringing the whiskey closer to your nose, as if taking a “mock-sip” helps grasp the full delightfulness of the aroma.

Palate

The body is thick, viscous, and rich. A lot of this is due to the port wine that was blended into the whiskey. Notes of dried red currants, raisins, rye spice, and dark berries coat the mid and back palate. The rye spice plays gently on the front of the palate, while the darker flavors concentrate more on the back. Dried red fruits as well as a very slight breadiness, almost like the after-taste of a strawberry grain bar are present on the mid palate as well. This is something I could drink a lot of.

Finish

The finish is long and thick. The notes of dark berries and dried, red-skinned fruit sit heavily on the mid-palate. The rye spice migrates to the back palate for the finish, but is not as noticeable as it was while I was still “chewing” the whiskey. It makes me want to keep on drinking it- a lot of it.

In closing

Wow. Adam did an incredible job blending this whiskey, and I am very glad that he chose both the specific port wine and proof that he did. It is just enough to give the flavor a punch, but not so much that it masks the flavors. Additionally, I love the idea of blending the whiskey rather than finishing it in port wine barrels. I really think that the blending allows the flavors of both the port and whiskey stand out in an extremely well-balanced manner. I have to say, this is certainly the best wine-involved whiskey that I have ever had. The value is incredibly high, as wine-involved whiskies of similar or even lesser value have been price well above $100. If you are in an area where you can get this, do it.