Welcome to Two Drams A Day! Each article is a personal journey where I pair two whiskies, often Scotch single malts among others, to discover the subtle differences that make each one unique and special. My approach is hands-on and intimate: I taste these whiskies side-by-side and share my real-time observations, from unexpected delights to the occasional letdowns. In the end, I choose a favourite, and along the way, I hope to learn something new and share that knowledge with you. If you’re curious about the nuanced and fascinating world of whisky and enjoy a personal touch in your reading, you’re in the right place. Stick around, subscribe, and join me on this flavorful adventure, two drams at a time!

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Hello, friends and internet plodders. It’s been more than a while since I’ve been on my journey – seven months, to be exact (the last official review was this pairing of Loch Lomond and Peat’s Beast) – and I’ve had this particular 15th dram from That Boutique-y Whisky Company (TBWC) Advent Calendar of 2022 staring at me for a while. Yes, I’m still working through those calendars! I’m not sure why I’ve been procrastinating about writing – I can assure you that I have been drinking [other] whisky every night! Nevertheless, here we are today, so let’s pick up where we left off. I’m ready to jump in, but first, we need music! Now playing: Warmth – Parallel (Slowed)

Today, the challenger is a 6-year-old Penderyn single malt from Wales. This is TBWC’s first batch bottling of this unique distillery, which uses a Faraday copper still with an added purifier, combining elements of pot and column distillation processes. This design enables the distillation process to occur in a single apparatus, resulting in a cleaner and more refined spirit. By definition, this is not Scotch, and so the distillery allows itself to experiment outside the rigid regulations. The label features a technical drawing of this unique setup – an artist’s hand holding a red pencil with dragon-scale texture symbolizing the red dragon on the Welsh flag. But the label is not enough to lure us in. Let’s see what this uncoloured, non-chill filtered, 50% ABV whisky holds inside! To find the right opponent, I skip my shelves of Scotch single malts and go towards the English and the European section, landing on August 17th – a 9-year-old whisky from Belgium, bottled by Wave Distil. This is a single cask bottling at 50%, which spent its first seven years in casks from Port and Cognac before being finished off for two more years in ex-bourbon casks (explicitly calling out Jack Daniel’s) and finally bottled in 2022. It is also uncoloured and non-chill filtered, immediately receiving my integrity bottling star. I’ve had this whisky before and even paired it with another TBWC bottling of the French Armorik 7-year-old, and you can read all about that in this write-up. It’s time to finally zoom in!

The Penderyn was matured in an ex-Moscatel cask, and it’s immediately a bit grassy and floral on the nose, like very green, ripe grapes. It’s very smooth and sweet on the palate, genuinely holding on to all those notes of Moscatel, and is a bit waxy and oily all throughout. The August 17th is very different from the Penderyn. It’s a bit sharper and stronger in alcohol (even though the two malts are bottled at exactly the same ABV!), immediately echoing Cognac [I taste no Port here], with a long and slightly robust finish. There is also no smoke in it (as some reviewers mention), but it is definitely a bit rougher on arrival. I think when I tasted this Belgian single malt by itself, it was pretty interesting and complex, but now, next to the Penderyn, all I taste is candied Cognac, which is not bad, mind you, but a lot more pronounced when comparing it to the Moscatel cask. I also didn’t taste Jack Daniel’s influence on the first couple of sips, but let’s see what happens if I explicitly focus on that fact while I go in for another tasting. Yes, the Daniel’s is there, but it’s very far away, with all that sweetness overshadowing it by Cognac. In the end, I think that Penderyn came in closer tasting to a Scotch whisky than the August 17th, which is more in the Cognac territory [I am aware that I am being repetitive].

Distillery / Region	Penderyn / Wales	Wave Distil / Belgium
Bottler / Series	TBWC / Batch One	Distillery / Rare Cask Edition
Stated Age / Vintage	6 years old	7 years + 2 years finish / 2013
Cask type	Moscatel	Port / Cognac + Jack Daniel’s
ABV / Cask Strength	50% / Yes!	50% / Yes!
Non-chill filtered/ Uncoloured	Yes / Yes 🌟	Yes / Yes 🌟
Price	£65 for a 50cl	£105
Did it win? / Did I like it?	Yes / Yes, excellent and clean	No / No, not this time around
Would I buy it? / Recommend it?	Yes / Yes, Penderyn delivers	Yes / Yes, every connoisseur should try!

So, there you have it, folks, another excellent pairing. It’s very interesting to see how the August 17th performed. In my past review of it, I really liked it next to another French whisky. But when it comes out side by side with a more traditional approach (I almost wrote Scotch, but Penderyn is definitely not from Scotland), it tends to gravitate more towards the sweeter, candied territory than the drier, Moscatel matured, single malt. And, in this case, I liked it less, but as they say, your mileage may vary. I intend to try it another day, very soon, just by itself or next to a real Cognac. So yes, this is indeed the purpose of these side-by-side experiments, you see? And so, for this time, I will pause and proclaim the Penderyn as the winner of this round. Good night!