Triple Distilled Single Malt Pedro Ximenez Cask

130 litres | Cask 391556 | Distilled 07.12.2022 | Bond Code CW000736

About Our Pedro Ximenez Sherry Casks

These 130 litre casks have been cut down from larger casks that were used to mature high-quality PX Sherry. Each cask has held sherry for a long period of time, at least 15 years. They have a lot more activity within the wood than standard casks, making them suitable for accelerated ageing and early bottling. Similar to some of our own small barrels that we have used for our award-winning Celtic Cask series we are confident that customers will be happy and rewarded with some excellent whiskey once bottled.

Pedro Ximenez casks are currently riding a wave of popularity for whiskey maturation. Surprisingly to most consumers, is that Pedro Ximenez is a white grape variety. It is grown throughout Andalucia but the area producing the sweetest & richest examples is Montilla-Moriles. After the PX or Pedro Ximenez grapes are picked, they are then left to dry in the sun which reduces the freshly picked grapes to become more raisin like. This process is called Asoleo and concentrates both the sugar and the acidity. Once pressed, these concentrated grapes are fermented in such a way that only part of the sugar is converted into alcohol leaving extremely high sugar levels. The wine is then aged oxidatively which produces very dark wines that are syrupy, super sweet, concentrated with flavours of figs, raisins, chocolate and coffee. The resultant PX casks can very rich flavours to the whiskey that’s matured in them.

Triple distilled whiskey is what Ireland has become most famous for. The extra distillation giving the whiskey a smoother, mellow style. Triple distillation allows you to push up the flavour spectrum, giving a whiskey that is more fragrant, floral, sweet and spicy. These characters are allowed to shine through by reducing the heaviness from the fusel oils.

Triple Distilled Single Malt Production

Great Northern Distillery source Irish barley which is malted in Ireland. The grains are wet milled, breaking open the grains to form a grist. Mashing is when this grist is mixed with hot water in the lauter tun which then turns the starch into a sugary liquid called wort. The wort is then converted into a beer-like liquid once yeast is added. The yeast converts the sugar into alcohol and it's now called wash. The wash is then triple distilled in Great Northern’s giant copper pot stills. The spirit is put into cask at 63% abv and in this occasion will be casked in a first fill pedro ximenez barrel.