Malting
is a disappearing art form. Wait a second – What’s malting?
Malting
is taking raw barley, steeping it in water, and allowing it to germinate on a malting
floor. The malting house can manually turn the barley by hand with a rake,
or it can be automated. Once that occurs, the goal is to halt further
germination by drying it, which is called kilning. Some malting houses achieve
the desired heat levels by burning peat, while others use warm air in the kiln.
Once the barley dries, the following process is called deculming, which
involves stripping the formed rootlets (or culms).
It
used to be that most distilleries that made malt whiskey had their own malting
floors. Now, much of that is outsourced.
Root Shoot
Malting is a Loveland, Colorado-based malthouse
founded in 2016. It is on the Olander family farm, run by 5th-generation
farmers Todd and Steve
Olander. It supplies corn, wheat, barley, rye,
and non-GMO corn to craft brewers and distillers. It is also the first craft malthouse
in the United States to operate the German-made Kasper Schultz malting system.
“What began as an operation rooted in blood has grown into a greater family connected by shared passions, common visions, an unyielding commitment to doing things the right way, and of course, an insatiable thirst for delicious craft beverages. Through dark and cold winter mornings to sweltering dog days of summer, from unpredictable pandemics to annual supercells and tornado warnings, the Root Shoot crew has weathered it all, as one. We’re lucky to have each other, and it’s not cliché, but rather choice, that we consider our team a family.” – Root Shoot Malting
This
year, Root Shoot Spirits, a division of Root Shoot Malting, released its
first locally sourced whiskey. Root Shoot
Whiskey is a Bottled-in-Bond American Single
Malt distilled from 100% Colorado-grown malted barley. Everything is
hyper-local; the furthest anything has traveled from farming to production is within
30 miles of the farm.
It’s
been aged four years, and because it is bonded, it is packaged at 50% ABV (100°).
The rest of the requirements include it being distilled by a single distiller at a single distillery during a single distillery season (either January to June
or July to December). Currently, distribution is limited to Colorado, and a
750ml bottle can be procured for about $62.99.
Before
I get to the tasting notes and rating, I must thank Root Shoot Spirits for
providing me with a sample of this American Single Malt in exchange for my
no-strings-attached, honest review.
Now,
let’s #DrinkCurious and discover what this whiskey is all about.
Appearance: I poured
Root Shoot Whiskey neat and sipped it from my Glencairn glass. The liquid
inside possessed a muted bronze color. The medium rim created husky, wavy, slow
tears.
Nose: Its
aroma consisted of apple pie, complete with the apples, cinnamon, and pastry. The
more I sniffed, the bolder the pie became. I also discovered floral notes, as
well as lightly-toasted oak. I found slight mintiness and nuts when I drew the
air through my lips.
Palate: Root
Shoot’s mouthfeel was exceedingly thin and oily. The front of my palate pulled baked
apples, cocoa powder, and pastry, while the middle featured tastes of cinnamon,
orange zest, and mint. The back offered dry leather, shredded tobacco, and oak.
Finish: Flavors
of shredded tobacco, dry leather, cocoa powder, and orange zest remained. Medium-long
in duration, there was oak spiciness left behind.
Bottle, Bar, or Bust: One of
the things I find captivating about American Single Malts is how broad a range
of flavors the category produces. Colorado has a plethora of distilleries that produce
it and more than a handful that include a Bottled-in-Bond version. The more I
sipped Root Shoot, the bigger the smile became. There was plenty to enjoy and
nothing off-hand to not. I believe Root Shoot Whiskey is well worth the price
and deserves my Bottle rating. Cheers!
My Simple, Easy-to-Understand
Rating System
- Bottle = Buy It
- Bar = Try It
- Bust = Leave It
Whiskeyfellow encourages
you to enjoy your whiskey as you see fit but begs you to do so responsibly.
Thank you for another informative review explaining the malting process.
ReplyDeleteYou're very welcome. Cheers!
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