Featured at World Whisky Day 2018: While not known for whisky on the international stage, South Africa has been the home of wines, gins, and beer for a great many years. The James Sedgwick distillery was founded in 1853 in Wellington but didn’t start to gain more attention until former English cricketer Andy Watts was made Master Distiller in 1991. Having trained at distilleries in Scotland, he saw the potential to further develop the distillery’s existing brand, Three Ships, throughout the 90s and early 2000’s. He launched Bain’s Cape Mountain in 2009, a single grain whisky made from South African maize. Named after Andrew Geddes Bain, a 19th century South African engineer and explorer, Andy helped introduce South African whisky to the wider world. Thanks Andy! The Bain’s and Three Ships brands are currently owned by the South African multinational Distell Group.
Distillery: James Sedgwick
Region: Foreign
Age: NAS
Strength: 43%
Price: $23.39
Location: Wellington, South Africa
Maturation: Two sets of first fill ex-bourbon casks
Nose: Corn, vanilla, floral
Palate: Grain, toffee
Finish: Spice, mineral
Comments:
Adam – Sometimes you have to take a leap of faith on a whisky and this was one for me. I’d never seen a South African whisky before and wanted to explore. Bain’s Cape Mountain is a single grain whisky and so I had to calibrate my expectations to not judge it as a single malt. Once that calibration sets in, though, this dram is rewarding in its own way. It has a rich, warm vanilla nose from the double setting of first fill ex-bourbon casks coupled with some subtle floral notes and some sweetness I expect is from the maize. Those notes carry over into the palate with a nice oily mouthfeel. This is an easy warm weather drink for me and at the current price of under $30, is a ridiculous value. The only downside is because the brand is still so new and (perhaps) production limited, distribution and supply can be tricky.
Jenny – A little sweet, a little spicy, it fills your whole mouth. It’s fun, a whole party going on.
Meghan – Super smooth and light feeling, like corn silk. A very nice toasted corn flavor, almost like corn flakes. There is a gentle minerality (slate) in the finish.
Michael – I get fall pie. Heavy on butter and spices with heavily alcoholed whipped cream. Yum!
A little sweet, a little spicy, it fills your whole mouth.
Peter – I enjoyed Bain’s Cape Mountain as soon as I drank it. It’s kind of syrupy. It doesn’t start out like you’re drinking a whisky. There’s this smoothness but then the syrup kinda comes in. It’s a little hot but is a nice slow burn once you drink it. Good on a blustery day. Warm and sweet.
Mary-Fred – There was a warmth to it and it was smooth. Amber comes to mind.
Caitlin – I agree that this is really good on a blustery day. It’s like a scarf.
Ben – It’s not like anything else you just have around. It’s not fancy, like you have to be careful with it. Bain’s Cape Mountain is very accessible, as if Andy would not be offended if I mixed it into a cocktail. There is a plantation feel, like you could make a julep with it.
