New Zealand Whisky Company 1990 Whisky

My whisky goal is to collect a single malt whisky from every country that produces single malt whiskies. When an opportunity comes along to add a New Zealand whisky to my collection, I grab it with both hands. I have some whisky from Australia as well.

Last year, my mom went to the UK. I managed to find a The New Zealand Whisky Company single malt whisky at the Whiskey Exchange, and mom brought it back.

The Māori, the indigenous people of New Zealand, call their home ‘Aotearoa’ – ‘The Land of the Long White Cloud’. New Zealand is well-known for its magnificent beauty of snow-capped mountains, tranquil forest and sweeping green vistas.

New Zealand is a country renowned for its clean air and pure water. Whiskies from the famous Willowbank Distillery are often said to have similar characteristics to single malt whisky produced in the Lowland or Speyside regions of Scotland – such as delicate aromas, a lighter body, hints of sweetness and a smooth finish.

The Baker family established the Willowbank Distillery. Production commenced in December 1969. In 1974 the first whisky went on sale and the company was renamed Wilson Distillers Ltd. Located in Dunedin on the South Island, Willowbank was the most southerly whisky distillery in the world.

Seagram Company Ltd acquired the distillery in 1981. Sadly, the distillery ceased production in 1997 as Seagram’s rationalised their business portfolio and sold the business to the Foster’s Group. The distillery was mothballed in 2000.

The hundreds of barrels of Cask Strength whisky was auctioned off or mothballed. In 2010, The New Zealand Whisky Company bought the last 80,000 litres in 443 barrels from what had previously been stored in an old aeroplane hangar. The whisky now resides in the towering seaside bonds store in Oamaru.

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New Zealand Whisky Company 1990 Vintage Review

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This particular whisky was distilled at the Willowbank distillery on New Zealand’s South Island in 1990. The date, 1990, is boldly displayed on the bottle. I have bottle #26 from barrel #90. It has a bottling date of September 2012.

REGION: New Zealand

ABV: 61.7%

COLOUR: The appearance of the whisky in the bottle is quite dark. In the glass, it is a light copper-gold colour. It is medium oily whisky.

NOSE: Quite subtle and soft. Notes of Christmas pudding and flowers with hints of toffee and cereals. In the background, there are bits of fresh summer fruit.

PALATE: Christmas cake and minced fruit. There are notes of oak and cereals mixed with florals and sherry sweetness.  We added quite a bit of water before the high alcohol content softened a bit.

FINISH: Long and lingering. It is warming and ends in notes of spice and leather.

RATING: VERY GOOD

A great bottle added to my collection, and I will try to find more releases from this New Zealand distillery and hopefully more from this beautiful country.

This New Zealand whisky is fairly subtle and uncomplicated; the thing that makes this whisky uniquq is the finish. It is the last warming spice and leather notes that makes you want to have another glass.

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