Maraska ABC Whisky

My whisky collection focuses on whisky from around the world. Living in South Africa makes getting my hands on unique bottles quite tricky. So imagine my delight when I spotted a bottle of Maraska ABC whisky from Yugoslavia on an international whisky auction.

Sadly, I can’t find much information about Maraska whisky. According to its website, the Maraska Company have a rich and glorious tradition in producing liquor.”Maraska has more than five centuries of experience and tradition in the production of making liquor items and for making one of the worlds best-known liqueurs, ‘Maraschino’.”

This special cherry is authentic only to Croatia and grows in the climate and area around Zadar, Croatia. The cherry has a unique flavour found nowhere else in the world.”

Looking at the printing on the bottle and the fact that it still refers to Yugoslavia, I guess that this Maraska ABC whisky was bottled around mid-1980s. Zadar, where Maraska is situated, is in Croatia.

Croatia declared independence and dissolved its association with Yugoslavia in 1991. The bottle is a bit bashed and bruised and does not seal well anymore. However, in our collection, it has a special place.

A small piece of history. Maraska does not create whisky anymore, and I can find no further information on their website. Maraska liquors are, however, available in the United States.

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Maraska ABC Whisky Review

Unfortunately, the cork crumbled when I opened it. It has no age statement. It is a 1 L bottle.

COUNTRY: Yugoslavia

ABV: 41%

COLOUR: A light golden colour.

NOSE: I don’t think that it was not aged very long. The Maraska ABC has hints of methylated spirits, cherries, mothballs and condensed milk.  Not a very complex nose.

PALATE: On the palate, it is somewhat anonymous. Rather forgettable. There are methylated spirit notes mixed with mild bitter citrus and a bit of raw wood. A few sweet fruit notes make an appearance. Adding water dulls down the raw spirit notes in the Maraska.

It does not release any other new flavours. The Maraska ABC becomes rather soulless with water. It is a dram that reminds us of the old Soviet times. The Soviet version of what life and whisky should be. Dull and grey and with no personality.

FINISH: The Maraska does have a rather long finish. Unfortunately, this finish is reminiscent of the bitter white part of citrus peel.

RATING: ORDINARY

The fact that the cork is damaged might have impacted the dram, and some of the better notes might have evaporated over time. Even though this Maraska whisky reminds me of the old Soviet Union, I am excited to have it in our collection. It represents a piece of history of a country that does not exist any more.

Another whisky from a country that does not exist anymore is the Hammerhead whisky from Czechoslovakia.  But it is a lot nicer than this Maraska release.

Anyone else ever heard of this Maraska whisky?

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