Mackmyra Preludium:03

Background: Mackmyra is the first Swedish whisky distillery (but not the
last; Box Destilleri in Ådalen appears keen to give them some home-grown
competition, and is scheduled to begin full production in spring of
2009.) Mackmyra's Scotch-inspired whisky is produced in two different
recipes: Elegant, where the malt is air-dried; and Smoke, where the malt
is dried over burning Swedish peat and juniper twigs. Aging is done in
three types of barrel: ex-bourbon, ex-sherry, and new Swedish oak. Six
releases of Preludium are planned: 01 was basically a blend of all of
their "firsts" (first bourbon cask, first distillate from the new still,
etc.); 02 is difficult to find information on, but appears to have been
unpeated and aged mainly in Swedish oak; 03 is peated and aged partially
in sherry.

Nose: Interestingly smoky. Some vegetal notes with an underlying
spiciness. A whiff of tar.

Taste: Dry, slightly smoky front with lots of oak influence. As we
progress toward the middle, the smoke comes to the fore, along with some
barley taste and a bit of sherry sweetness. Long, dry finish is all peat
and smoke.

(Insert water 'A' into glass 'B')

Nose: Flowery overtones with some strange minerality going on
underneath.

Taste: Sherry influence is more prominent; not a lot of fruitiness, but
some oxidized notes. Herbal tones.

Overall: Quite young, and a bit unbalanced. Has a lot of potential, but
isn't quite there yet.

Mackmyra Preludium:04

Background: The base of Preludium:04 is the unpeated Elegant recipe,
matured mainly in first-fill ex-Bourbon casks, though portions were also
matured in three additional cask types: new Swedish Oak, ex-Champagne,
and ex-Sherry. Also in the blend are a couple of casks (from their first
small distillery) which they are calling "smoke tail", where a batch of
unpeated spirit was distilled immediately after a batch of peated and
picked up a small amount of its flavour.

Nose: Very young, quite vegetal with lots of green apple notes and a bit
of spice.

Taste: Young and sweet; grassy barley with some lemon overtones. Nutty
in the middle, with a long spicy oak finish.

(Dilution proceeds apace)

Nose: Very sweet, and the fruit notes seem a lot like candy apple. Some
lemon comes through now.

Taste: A bit less brash and more integrated.

Overall: Excellent for its age; light, sweet and fruity.