Review: M&H Apex STR Single Cask

We got our first taste of an M&H Apex single cask single malt back in 2022. Several single casks, in fact, including a stripped and recharred cask like this latest expression that recently crossed our desk. As a reminder, Apex is the top of the Milk & Honey portfolio featuring both small batch and limited edition, single cask expressions focusing on unique finishings and maturation. We weren’t given any specific age or maturation information on this one other than the obvious fact that it was aged in a shaved, toasted, and recharred cask (STR). Head distiller Tomer Goren reportedly selected this “highly anticipated” single cask for its exceptional flavors. Let’s see for ourselves.

On the nose, this expression is a bit more cask-forward than what we sampled two years ago. Exotic notes of sandalwood and herbal tea are a touch dry but still engaging. As it opens, some lemon peel and vanilla biscuits add a bit of brighter sweetness. The palate is piquant and warming, frontloaded with notes of dried ginger and clove that give way to juicy orange and cinnamon sugar before a midpalate shift to dried herbs and pencil shavings. A lacing of vanilla buttercream, subtle throughout the sip, builds with moderate intensity into the finish, adding a welcome creaminess to an otherwise burly conclusion of peppercorn and seasoned oak. A very different single cask than our first sampling, but not without its charms.

115.6 proof. Reviewed: Cask 2018-0838.

A- / $100 / mh-distillery.com

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