Aurora & 7yo Cask Strength | 46% & 58.2% ABV

wolfburn aurora 7yo cask strength bottles — Score: 6/10

**Good stuff.**
***TL;DR***
*Bottled time capsules. Getting better.*

A whisky archaeologist's dream?

I’m not an archaeologist but if I was a wide-eyed 10 year old again, daydreaming of my ideal job (pilot was scratched out due to colour blindness), it would be near the top of the list.

Maybe it was somewhat coincidental with the release of the first Jurassic Park movie, or the romance implied from childhood books, I definitely considered it. I’m sure some of you did as well, fantasising about scratching away at old relics, elucidating their hidden secrets, and discovering amazing hidden gems. This is much the same way as I view ourselves right now. We are in the Golden Age of whisky, where new distilleries doing new things are popping up all over the world, awaiting a firm-brimmed and khaki-clad explorer to stumble upon their elixir, before shouting about their discovery to the world.

It’s as if we’re time-travelling archaeologists, able to spin the clock back to the age of dinosaurs, observing them in their natural habitat and confirming our hypothesis of their ecosystems, behaviours, and interactions with each other before being wiped from existence, their only record of their existence is their petrified bones.

My comparisons to the dinosaur era is not coincidental either. Much in the way they went extinct due to external factors, whisky can and will likely be much the same. We have seen this cycle before where whisky was booming only to be followed by the extinction of certain distilleries during a downturn. The recent resurgence has resulted in a drastic increase in distilleries producing whisky however some may not last the test of time, especially if a downturn follows our current upswing.

How long until they are bought by a mega conglomerate and closed shortly thereafter during a downturn because of economic pressures? Or are they an independently-owned distillery that just can’t operate due to high consumable prices due to the inability to obtain bulk pricing for raw ingredients, barrels, or even bottles? How will we, as consumers, remember or discover the secrets of these closed distilleries? Fortunately for us, the products of these distilleries are relatively inert and shelf-stable, allowing us to preserve their time capsules for future study. We can observe them in their natural habitats today, storing away samples for comparisons against future quality or market conditions.

Much in the way Dougie has obsessively sampled the continuously maturing Adrnamurchan spirit, the increasing number of distilleries affords us the same luxury. Some pre-three year old distilleries choose to release “while we wait” whiskies, composed of purchased and blended products that may or may not be similar to their planned product portfolio. Other distilleries, either through sufficient fiscal backing or sheer force of will, wait until their own products are legally of age and begin releasing products.

I think Wolfburn falls into the latter category, where their initial releases are quite young and could be considered a time capsule of their own whisky at that point in time - especially if they become discontinued as their stocks continue to mature and they phase out these initial releases in favour of new product lines or age-stated spirits. While Wolfburn has maintained their initial product line (Northland, Aurora, Morven, and Langskip) thus far, among other occasional special releases, it remains to be seen if these are phased out, making them an integral piece of Wolfburn’s history. People pay immense sums of money for old and young Macallan, Ardbeg, Imperial (closed), Bruichladdich, and many other distilleries, so it’s likely these initial releases that preserve the foundation of a distillery’s reputation are truly time capsules and will continue to mature in value, despite the potentially immature quality of their whisky at this point in time.

Seeing as we haven’t reviewed anything from Wolfburn on Dramface yet, I thought I should give you the TL;DR: Wolfburn is located in Thurso, Caithness, and is very much at the northern coastal tip of mainland Scotland, a stone throw south of the Orkney islands. Bottling is completed on-site and began in 2016, three years after their first spirit run on Burns Day (January 25th) 2013. First peated spirit was mashed and distilled in 2014 and they only produce around 135,000 litres per year. This would likely be considered a Scottish microdistillery, although for me here in Canada, this is solidly in the medium sized craft distillery range.

Review 1/2

Wolfburn Aurora, Batch SA-Aurora-0001 (2016?), 46% ABV
£43 (CAD$85 paid)

I purchased this in March 2022 however I suspect this is the original batch that was released in 2016. Wolfburn hasn’t had much of a distribution push in Canada, not a surprise given the small distillery and even smaller brand presence.

Score: 4/10

**Some promise.**
***TL;DR***
*It gets better with time*

Nose

Honey, a touch of indistinct sherry sweetness, walnuts, and dry grass. It’s a light nose and not overcooked with sherry, as exemplified by the light colour.

Palate

Spirity but not biting. Supermarket golden honey, raisins, raw walnut bitterness and black pepper. The finish is short and not unpleasant - a mix of the golden honey and pepper. After a few minutes, a slightly earthy vegetal note appears.

The Dregs

I cracked this bottle almost a full year ago and didn’t connect with it for the first several weeks. Looking at my notes from those first several experiences over the first couple months, I’ve scribbled “resinous”, “vegetal”, “barley dust”, and “earthy & wet leaves” as the dominant notes. My score at the time was a 3/10. It wasn’t a great experience that resulted in this bottle being shuffled to the back of the shelves to collect dust. So when I picked up the 7 yo CS release, I dusted this original Aurora bottling off for comparison and was pleasantly surprised what time and air space in the bottle had done. This is by far the best example of time and air’s influence on whisky that I’ve ever experienced.

It’s not the best budget option at all for me given the flavour experience vs. price ratio but is a worthwhile bottle to have on hand to track the progress of Wolfburn’s spirit as their stocks mature. It’s an easy sipper and if you get your hands on a bottle, especially at a significant sale price on old stock, decant half of it into an empty bottle and let it sit for a while. It could be worth your while.

Score: 4/10 BB

Review 2/2

Wolfburn 7yo Cask Strength, 2022 Release, 58.2% ABV
£70 (CAD$95 paid)

Score: 6/10

**Good stuff.**
***TL;DR***
*A lightly smoked dark sweetie*

Nose

Dense with a dark sweetness. Distinct oloroso sherry notes of trail mix (raisins and unsalted nuts), and a mix of brown sugar and cooked dates. The peat is hiding in the background, coming across as a dry mainland style peat. The ABV does have a bit of a prickle to it which isn’t surprising.

Palate

Dark Manuka honey. Figs and dates. Dried raisins accompanied with dried cranberries and oranges which provide an interesting tartness to the mix. Brown sugar. A nut-like bitterness is present. The peat is still hiding in the background. If I were to guess, this falls within the lightly peated category (say 5-15 phenol ppm) so if this is in your wheelhouse, you will be very pleased. The ABV comes across as a black pepper and doesn’t intrude into the experience or syrupy mouthfeel. Putting some on my hands and rubbing them together, a very light highland heather-like peat, not unlike Highland Park, is present once everything has evaporated.

Adding water doesn’t expose a single element but rather just tames the whole experience down. It is refreshing to have a whisky that follows the nose through to the palate, providing a harmonious experience.

The Dregs

This was an interesting one. It didn’t compare well with the Aurora (not a surprise given the peated and unpeated comparison) so I poured a few other drams alongside to provide some relative comparisons for you.

Just for fun, I poured a dram of a 2022 release of Ardbeg’s Uigeadail. Straight away, the Ardbeg looks significantly darker, almost fake tanned darker. It proudly states non-chill filtered however no mention if a touch of colouring is added to maintain visual consistency between batches. The Wolfburn’s ABV jumps out of the glass and prickles the nose more than the Ardbeg, although I will say I prefer the palate of the Wolfburn. It’s more refined, brighter, less harsh and attacking, and overall presents as more balanced between the sherry sweetness, the peat phenolics, and the high ABV heat. The palate flavour note preferences between the two would be up to your preferences however I would urge you to consider these sherry-influenced Wolfburn in your future purchasing considerations.

In another NAS/younger whisky comparison, I splashed some Bunnahabhain Toiteach A Dha into another glass as the Ardbeg might have been too peated for a comparison. Now this was an interesting and more apt comparison. The Wolfburn was rounder, sweeter, and less harsh on the nose than the Bunna, surprising given the ABV difference. On the palate, the ABV of the Wolfburn is more present although the mouthfeel is far more syrupy and sweet whereas the Bunna was thinner, more bitter, and peatier. If you like your peated and sherried Bunnahabhain, then you should be paying attention to these equivalent releases from Wolfburn. Stay tuned for a forthcoming review of Bunna’s Toiteach A Dha as well.

Could I identify a distinct distillery character thread between the Aurora and this 2022 Cask Strength release? Not at all. And that’s fine because it is part of the growing and maturation process. Much like watching other sub-decade old distilleries (Ardnamurchan or Raasay for example) mature, we begin to see a shift in the quality of spirit and the resulting products.

I was recently listening to a podcast featuring Niel Hendriszk from Morrison Distillers and their own distillery, Aberargie in Perthshire, began production in 2017. Hendriszk mentioned although they technically have product around five years of age available and could release a whisky, their first year of operation was more or less a “wash”. Getting the equipment to run correctly, identifying the optimal process parameters that maximise production volume, tinkering to optimise wash quality, and learning the best still operations to extract the best distillate from said wash took nearly a year. Their resulting first year of production may not be the best representation of their forthcoming distillery character or quality. So if we consider a similar metric for Wolfburn, then my early era three year old Aurora might have featured some of these learning curve items in the product, and releasing them at a young age would have exposed all of the potential blemishes. This could have explained some of these blemishes that marred my experiences upon first crack of the bottle and how time in the bottle may have mellowed some of these out.

So with this 7 yo cask strength release, time in cask has worked its oxidative magic, maturing the spirit from a pimply youngster into an attractive adolescent which will only get better with time.

It’s a solid 6.5/10 whisky but I’ve done the honorary round-down of the score. It’s a fair price for a good whisky and is showing the excellent trajectory that Wolfburn’s spirits are on. Exciting things are coming from this remote distillery.

Following an innocuous question in the Dramface writer’s chat, Wally piped up and wished to provide his thoughts on this Wolfburn cask strength timecapsule.

Score: 6/10 BB

Wally’s Review

Wolfburn 7yo Cask Strength, 2022 Release, 58.2% ABV
£70

I bought this based on a single thing; curiosity. Specifically around its age statement.

Wolfburn was a little too far ahead of the new-distillery fervour. Reminiscent of Arran having to ‘sell’ who they even were, for years, or Glengyle releasing years of market-prepping and playful “Work-in-Progress” editions; we were all a little more conservative back then. We weren’t quite ready to jump on the next great new thing.

Especially when they tasted like they were a little early too. I tried the first ever Aurora, Morven and other Wolfburn editions. Each time I was happy to wait until things were a little less ‘uncouth’. There’s merit in the sampling of history, but I’ll take a wild guess that not many Dramface readers are interested in curating exhibits.

We’d like nice whisky to enjoy. They weren’t there yet. Not many are at three years.

Now, they’re knocking on for 10 years.

Score: 6/10

**Good stuff.**
***TL;DR***
*Great, encouraging, unique progress.*

Nose

Cold ash and lemon oil. Thick, set honey. Crisp apple, toasted sesame seeds and a spritz of lemon-scented room spray. All of this is happening in a hayloft.

Palate

Great body and weight on arrival, first few sips neat are gloopy; much to like. Things are hot and sour though, so pause and return.

The sourness and tartness continue but they’re in check with a nice smoky backdrop. Things do eventually sweeten, but we stay spirity, with green apple and lemon and we’re still in a hayloft; it’s not dusty, just ever so slightly farmy. With water the perfumed side appears. More time brings sweetness.

Inspired by Broddy I sipped alongside an Ardmore and eventually a Lagavulin. It turned into a nice evening, with this 7yo showing hazelnut and honey sweetness and a richer note compared to the others. I pour another and things get fuller as the sourness subsides a little. In summary; lemons, apples and farmyard with a very soft smoke.

The Dregs

I want to celebrate that one of our most recent producers is now able to release core expressions with a decent age statement. It’s all natural too. I think it’s the richest, fullest and most complete expression I’ve tried and it’s finding its own, unique vibe and profile.

There are fans of the distillery who rave about single casks and small batches. There are myriad odd and complicated special releases too but they’re difficult to place in the range. The positive side is that it seems we’re getting close to the time where Wolfburn can lay down a simple and easy-access core range and build on it. If they can do that with an age statement, great, but that isn’t deal-breaker. We can sense the maturity building and, in this bottle at least, taste it.

Every fibre of my being wants to give this a 7, but I falter. Only because there are still edges here that don’t bring it quite up to a “Very Good Indeed” rating. Not quite. Not yet. But close. The gamble on this 7yo paid off. It doesn’t make the permashelf, but it gets me keen for more from this relative newbie.

I’m with Broddy though, It’s higher than a 6. £70 is fair and Wolfburn is firmly on the radar.

Score: 6/10 WMc

Tried these? Share your thoughts in the comments below.

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