ONE BOTTLE LEFT IN CANADA

The nose engulfed us with drifts of molasses and thuds of wood (toasted oak, cinnamon) summarized by one comment – ‘Treacle buns in a sawmill’; brighter colours in the rainbow of sweetness included honey, raspberry pop-tarts and banana loaf. Adding water magically drew out the bakery element (Danish pastries with apricot jam and cherry, croissant with marmalade) and the aromatics (Christmas spice Yankee candles, pot-pourri, pumpkin pie). The palate, unsurprisingly, was hugely sweet (vanilla pod sugar, corn candies, blueberry muffins, pancakes smothered in boysenberry syrup) but all neatly balanced by grape seed and dried cranberry tartness and warming wood-derived spices.