Review: Pokeno New Zealand Single Malt – Totara Cask, Triple Distilled, and Winter Malt
Just last year we introduced you to the impressive core range from Pokeno, and now the Kiwi whisky maker, which has only been distilling since 2017, is out with another lineup of unique single malts. Pokeno’s Exploration Series is a line that is intended to showcase the distillery’s most innovative whiskeys with emphasis on the culture and unique environment of Pokeno’s hometown, Aotearoa. Say that three times fast. If you can even pronounce it. Thoughts follow.
Pokeno Totara Cask New Zealand Single Malt Whiskey – Fully matured in first fill bourbon casks with a secondary maturation in 200 liter casks specially constructed by Pokeno’s cooperage from indigenous totara trees. The nose is exotic and creamy with notes of chewy coconut macaroon, lychee nut, cinnamon, and sandalwood. As it opens, it gets fruitier, showing sweet, tinned pear, and apple chips. The palate doesn’t quite live up to the promise of the aroma with a more staid display of barley sugar, lemon oil, and vanilla frosting. It’s still well-structured, if a bit light on its feet, and there’s a lovely roundness in its presentation. With time to open, stone fruit and minted syrup add more complexity before a warm, dry finish of cocoa powder and green pear. 92 proof. A- / $150
Pokeno Triple Distilled New Zealand Single Malt Whiskey – Pokeno’s single malts are already taken from a small hearts cut of just 20%, but this limited edition undergoes an additional distillation on Pokeno’s 3600 liter spirits still before maturation in first fill bourbon barrels. The aroma is bright with notes of melon, honeysuckle, and candied citrus. Undertones of peanut brittle and caramel sauce add depth, but things stay rather high-toned, even as it opens. A generous, malty sweetness envelops the palate with creamy nougatine and soft accents of baking spice and juicy tropical fruits – a bit of kiwi, appropriately. It’s well-built and uncomplicated, not unlike the Origin expression in the core lineup. 98 proof. A- / $100
Pokeno Winter Malt New Zealand Single Malt Whiskey – Made from a unique selection of New Zealand malts – Laureat Distillers Malt, Chocolate Roasted Malt, Toffee Malt, and Manuka Smoked Malt – and aged in first fill bourbon barrels. The mix of malts makes for an unusual aroma of grilled orchard fruits, baking chocolate, and damp smoke. As it opens, a lacing of fudge sauce and treacle add heft and outpace some of the earlier fruits. The palate is dominated by darker malts with notes of baking chocolate, singed cinnamon toast, and torched sugar. It’s still rather light bodied, making for a tricky contrast to all those toasty, well-baked flavors. The finish is peppery and dry with fading notes of cocoa nibs and cherry cordial. 96 proof. B+ / $100
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