Review: The Hearach Single Malt, Croft Strength, and Oloroso Cask Matured
Scottland’s windswept Isle of Harris produces more than just iconic tweed fabric. Since 2015, the Isle of Harris Distillery, the islands first and currently only legal distillery, has been making an arguably more iconic Scottish product, whisky. Like many upstart distilleries, gin helped to keep the lights on and the stills running while the whisky aged. Quite a good gin, in fact. I recall a time not so long ago, before broader distribution, when their Isle of Harris Gin was a sought-after liquid souvenir for spirits tourists and travel retail shoppers. The quality of that spirit only added to the anticipation of their future single malt.
The wait was finally over in late 2023 when the distillery released The Hearach. Channeling the distilling traditions lost during the Pabbay clearances of the 1840s, when distilling farmers were evicted from the island, Isle of Harris makes their whiskies using a local, low mineral water source that’s reportedly the softest of any Scottish distillery. Their malted barley, mostly sourced from the mainland, is lightly peated before long fermentations that range from 70 to as much as 120 hours. Distillation is performed on a pair of small, custom copper pot stills.
For the flagship offering, the final spirit ages in a mix of first-fill bourbon, first-fill oloroso, and fino sherry butts before marrying in batches for a minimum of 12 weeks and bottling without chill filtration. Each batch of The Hearach has some slight variations, mostly in marrying time and bottles produced, but you can find that info in impressive detail on the distillery’s website. Besides the flagship, The Hearach single malt comes in several other expressions, including one aged entirely in first-fill oloroso sherry butts, and more recently, a high strength version exclusively for travel retail. We received samples of all three. Thoughts follow.
The Hearach Single Malt Review
Aged for a minimum of four years in a very precise mix of casks: 22% Heaven Hill bourbon casks, 64% Buffalo Trace bourbon casks, 11% oloroso, and 4% fino sherry. The nose is big and sultry and delivers an impressive evolution in the glass. At first, it’s a bit brooding with a mix of heathery smoke, grilled lemon, and burnt sugar, but the smoke unwinds quickly and sweetens as it opens in the glass, becoming more like fresh campfire with higher toned accents of clove-studded orange and marzipan. As it opens further, a new leather note emerges with lemon oil and lightly toasted marshmallow.
The palate is bright and effusive with a gentle peat smoke note that evolves across the sip adding hints of saltwater brine and creosote. Roasted malt forms the foundation and delivers an almost creamy texture with top notes of waxy honeycomb and sweet, spiced pear, both of which add a welcome brightness. The midpalate is a touch floral with wildflower and heather notes that complement the creaminess. The finish is long and gently spiced with fading notes of rich buttercream, sugared almonds, and gingerbread. Delightful stuff, especially considering how young it is. Stay tuned, folks. 92 proof. A- / $90
The Hearach Croft Strength Review
Named for the small plots of land worked by farmers on the island, this is classic The Hearach Single Malt but bottled at a slightly higher alcohol strength and available exclusively at select airports throughout the United Kingdom. Specific maturation details weren’t available on the website, but presumably this is drawn from a similar mix of casks. The slight uptick in octane makes quite a difference here, adding significantly more smoke to the nose. Early notes of pipe smoke and dry tobacco give way in time to toasted sugar and lemon scones with a gentle lacing of licorice. It’s not as fruity as the classic offering but the peat does add depth and intensity to the aroma. With more time to open, some cooked orchard fruits and soft baking spice arrive, along with a pronounced caramel sweetness.
The palate is round and quite sweet with an initial wave of honey candies and vanilla bean punctuated in short order by a helping of woody spice: clove and cinnamon stick and licorice foremost among them. The smoke isn’t prominent, but it does stick around a bit more than the standard offering with a sweet cigar ash note that lingers well into the finish. The midpalate delivers a bit of cocktail cherry and spiced pear before eroding into a warming conclusion of chocolate mint, black pepper, and lemon custard. This one is more of a classic “island” peated style and surprisingly bold for such a modest increase in alcohol. 104 proof. B+ / $90
The Hearach Oloroso Cask-Matured Review
Aged for a minimum of six years exclusively in specially selected oloroso sherry butts sourced directly from Jose y Miguel Martin in Spain. The nose is gently spiced and leathery with a lacing of fragrant pipe smoke, all the trappings of an old library complete with a slowly smoldering fire. Soft nutmeg and clove give way to well-worn furniture and old book bindings with undertones of roasted nuts and orange zest that sweeten significantly into the midpalate to something resembling burnt almond torte, that torched sugar note replacing the bolder tobacco and wood smoke that first appeared.
Sherry and smoke are a bit assertive initially on the palate with notes of tart cherry and chimney soot. That all unwinds rather quickly, however, revealing lush layers of toffee, clove syrup, cocoa, and butter mints. The peat smoke retreats significantly after the first sip, dissolving to subtle notes of brine and cigar ash. The midpalate adds a green flourish of walnut and dried herbs before relaxing further into a generous, warming finish of red licorice, chocolate-covered orange peel, and toasted marshmallow. Impressive already as a younger single malt, but it feels like it has even more to give. Excited to see where this one goes from here. 92 proof. A / $100
The Hearach Single Malt
USD90
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