Pokeno “Exploration Series – Triple Distilled” Single Malt Whisky (New Zealand) – [WA 91]

Introduction

Distillery Notes:

In 2017 Pkeno Whisky was founded with a vision to put New Zealand on the map as a producer of single malt whisky. It is the largest single malt distillery in the country.

Today, the Pkeno Whisky Company handles all processing on site at a state-of-the-art distillery with maturation warehouses, filtration and bottling facilities, and a fully functional cooperage.

Everything done here is driven by a goal to create one of the worlds great Single Malts. Batch production, long fermentation, and slow distillation are just a few of the things that help make them different. As craft distillers, they are also able to focus on quality over quantity and on doing things their way, not the easy way.

Using only pure volcanic spring water from the North Island distillerys surrounding volcanic hills and family-farmed barley from New Zealands rich, fertile South Island, Pkeno selects only the finest casks to mature their precious spirit, and the warm subtropical local climate accelerates its maturation and flavor development.

All of this allows Pkeno to produce Single Malt whisky with exceptional body and flavor; whisky that captures the pure spirit of Aotearoa New Zealand.

About the Whisky:

Triple Distillation helps to concentrate not only the alcohol in the whisky, but also helps create lighter, more fruity flavours. Having only two stills, we performed the final two distillations in our 3600 litre spirit still, separating the hearts from the heads and tails each time.

A characteristic of Pokeno Single Malt is our incredibly sweet and smooth character, created by our extremely slow distillation, which allows the maximum amount of reflux in our stills. We then take a very small heart of approximately only 20% of the distillation run. By adding an additional distillation, this has pushed the profile to the next level. Pokeno Triple distilled single malt has been matured in only the finest first fill bourbon barrels, giving us an incredibly smooth, sweet and honeyed single malt..

Bottled at 49% abv.

Limited Release 900 bottles for the US

Tasting Notes:

On the nose there is rich honey and vanilla with hints of citrus and toffee. In the mouth rich vanilla bean and butterscotch mingle with notes of sweet citrus and a hint of pepper clove. There is a long rich finish.
Awards/Reviews:

Double Gold – San Francisco World Spirits Competition 2024

Best Small Batch Single Malt (No Age Statement, Non-Scotland/US) – World Whiskies Awards

91 Points – Whisky Advocate“Orange, lemon, and lime peel oils, and hints of candied citrus on the nose, then a marmalade note develops after a few minutes, though remaining light and delicate. Good weight and structure on the palate, with plenty of fruity elements: peach, mango strips, and orange peel, plus hints of toffee, vanilla seeds, and pepper, leaving a zesty tanginess on the palate.”