Review #65 Milk and Honey Whisky in Bloom: Israeli

Score: 7.8 / 10

Distillery: Milk and Honey

Type: Craft Israeli Whiskey

It scares me a little when Israel's first single malt whisky distillery (2014) opens up with a name that contains the word milk in it. Something that you'll never find as an ingredient, or note, or anything to do with whisky period! Are they sure they know how to make whiskey? Is this the flagship of Israel's best whisky brands?

Searching around the label, it gets worse. Whisky "In Bloom", "Young" Single Malt, bourbon and scotch casks? Are they trying to sell this stuff eerrrr what?

Well they did sell it! You can take one of the 1100 bottles out of circulation, because here at Po It Up whiskey podcast, we try it all. No whiskey gets left behind. That doesn't mean we have to like it though, and we will certainly let you know when we do not. Pretty excited for this. It should be a very unique experience.

46% Alc/Vol - 92 Proof - Served neat in a Glencairn glass.

Aged in Red Wine STR (shaved, toasted, re-charred), ex-bourbon and Islay casks.

Whiskey Review:

Nose: Lots of honey, sherry, dried fruits, vanilla and light smoke

Palate: Creamy mouthfeel that packs unique flavors. Honey, pear and apple are the cynosure. Light dried plum, sherry and mellow peat compliment the core flavors. In the second stage of the drinking experience, a surprising cinnamon/pepper spice emerges and combines with a Mezcal-esque (agave) smoky flavor.

Finish: Medium. Toasted sugar, light smoke, dried wood, dried fruits (peaches/pear) and mildly tannic. The finish lingers for a while and the front sides of my cheeks experience a light tingle/numbing sensation.

Score: 7.8

Scale:

S+ Sensational - The Pinnacle (9.5+)

A - AXEceptional (astounding) (9-9.5)

B - bravo (step aBove average) (8-8.9)

C - competent (7-7.9)

D - disappointing (6-6.9)

F - flush it down the toilet (fail) (5.9 below)

Notes: Availability? Uncommon. Go ask a store manager if they carry any Israeli single malts and let me know what look you get as a response. It's not a hot item and likely won't be sold out, but you may might have to dig around larger stores if you want to find this "honey" pot.

This was better than I expected, but I had very low expectations going into it. Overall, I think this young distillery has a lot of room to grow and expand. I'm curious to see how the aged expressions match up to other countries as Israel's climate allows whisky to age 2.5x faster than places like Scotland.