American single malt has been around for decades, but it still doesn’t have the legal definition that other American whiskeys like bourbon and rye have. Distillers and whiskey fans thought that was about to change a few years ago when the Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau (TTB, the federal agency in charge of alcohol) took up the matter.
To this date, there are still no set guidelines in place. The American Single Malt Whiskey Commission (ASMWC) proposed the following rules, which are likely what will be instituted when the government finally gets around to it: American single malt must be made from a mash bill of 100 percent barley at one distillery in the U.S., matured in new or used oak casks, distilled to no more than 160 proof, and bottled at a minimum of 80 proof.
Portland, OR, distillery Westward Whiskey was a founding member of the ASMWC, and it has been making single malt for about 20 years that meets all of those qualifications. The whiskey is informed by three core tenets: it’s brewed like craft ale, distilled like a single malt, and aged like a bourbon. All of those characteristics can be found in the core lineup, which start out as ale that is then distilled twice in pot stills and aged in toasted and charred new American oak barrels.
Of course, like bourbon, there are variations on that maturation, at least as far as cask finishing, and different expressions are given a secondary maturation in pinot noir wine barrels, stout casks, and sherry casks.
The latest Westward release is different, however. Milestone Edition No. 2 – A Discovery of Spice is the second in this series of expensive expressions that is meant to encapsulate “... Old World winemaking and distilling techniques through the lens of American whiskey,” according to the brand. And in that, it has succeeded.
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As mentioned, it's the second Milestone release. And this new edition is drawn from whiskey aged in a solera style system of 21 barrels. That means that master blender Miles Munroe replaces the whiskey that he pulls from the barrels for this release with other whiskey, ensuring that there will always be some older liquid in the blend and that each edition will be different from the previous one. Munroe said he was inspired by a visit to Taiwan during which he paired street food with each of the core Westward expressions.
For this Milestone edition, he attempted to capture a bit of spice on the palate by using stout, pinot noir, and rum cask finished whiskeys in the blend, along with a small amount of amburana-finished whiskey. Thankfully, this does not completely overwhelm the palate with notes of cinnamon potpourri, as is usually the case with whiskey aged in this type of Brazilian wood. Calling it A Discovery of Spice is right. There are big notes of cinnamon, nutmeg, and allspice on the palate, along with flavors like licorice, chocolate, toasted nuts, raisins, and dates.
Unlike single malt Scotch, there is no real ultra-aged, high-end space in the American single malt category yet. At $250 per bottle, a release like Milestone is certainly a step in that direction, but clearly the focus is on quality and not just luxury for luxury’s sake.
Milestone No. 2 is sold out at the Westward website, but you can find it now in limited numbers in whiskey shops around the country.
