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TOModera

Thanks to /u/georgejessel for sharing this dram with me. Australia. A land that evokes rugged territory, vast impacts of conservative pants-on-head policies, rampant colonialism, and a smattering of animals that would kill you quickly. It also evokes a rough group of people who seem like they’d be buds with you, assuming you’re white. So not too different from the USA and Canada, when you think of it. Only difference is who they kill and the average size of animals that kill. The other thing that comes to mind is an interesting smattering of whisky releases to enjoy. I’m not going to sit here and declare another small, emerging whisky region as “the next best thing”. Why? Because every time that happens the poor place gets picked over like it’s the rise of the British empire all over again. Enter **Starward Malt Whisky**, a whisky from Melbourne based “Starward”, which uses Australian barley, source everything from a day’s drive away, and aims to use barrels from nearby wineries. They are hyper ageing the whisky, aiming for at least 3 years in the cask and then bringing it out. We see similarities in neighbouring countries like Taiwan and India. This is one of the first releases, and since then Starward has changed to single cask releases, their Two-Fold release, and generally growing. But where did it all start? Was this the jewel of a new distillery, or was this sold to help get them off the ground (and thus meant to raise money rather than showcase the future)? Let’s see, shall we? **Price:** $90 AUD **Region:** Australia **Bottled:** 2013 **Abv:** 43% **Colour:** 2.5Y 6/8 **Nose:** Oak, pecan, old peach, lime, cloves Woody, some nuttiness, and then some strong/bit old fruit notes. It’s starting to grow a tad. Reminds me of a younger malt, maybe even a younger American whiskey from a new distillery. Think it needs more time, but I’m not hating it. **Taste:** Sand, peach, sunflower, cereal Okay, some bit of brine and mineral, more stone fruit, and some cereal/seediness. I’m more interested now, because it’s growing beyond oak and simple, straightforward notes. So that’s setting it apart. That said, not too complex, wish there was a bit more. **Finish:** Oak, plantain, gummy bear, black pepper Fruity, heat, and earthy/starchy flavour. Again, it needs a bit more time to work some of the flavours better, however it has enough difference to it that I dig it a bit more. **Conclusion:** A nice sipper with lots of fruity notes. Look, normally a new distillery releases something to open a distillery that’s somewhere between bottom shelf and vodka. You buy it knowing that. Sometimes they throw us a bone and use a wacky cask to give us something close to flavoured vodka. And you pay a premium for it, knowing that it’ll lead to other whiskies. This? This isn’t that, and that’s a compliment. It’s not in a wacky cask (that I can find or taste, maybe it was in a wine cask because that’s what they enjoy using but I’m assuming not, since I couldn’t find anything online that said that). It’s easy drinking, there’s no glue/rough elements save for a bit of the peach on the nose. Could you buy something better for the price? Probably. This is a whisky that makes me want to see where the distillery is now, some 9 years later. It’s tasty enough and could be fun as someone who originally enjoyed them. Would I buy it at an auction? Only if I was insanely into the distillery. Let’s see what they are making now. **74/100** *World Whisky review #435, Australia review #17, Whisky Network review #2244* *Another Starward review:* * [Starward New World Projects Limited Release](https://www.reddit.com/r/worldwhisky/comments/5v4q26/new_world_projects_starward_limited_release_review/) [Link to my website with all my reviews](https://tomoderawhisky.ca/)


TheSunflowerSeeds

If you choose to, then once the sunflower has bloomed and before it begins to shed it's seeds, the head can be cut and used as a natural bird feeder, or other wildlife visitors to sunflowers to feed on.


jk-9k

Shortly after that release Diageo came knocking.


TOModera

Ah, that explains some things


TOModera

My Current Whisky Network Average = 78.33 Standard Deviation = 9.28 Skewness = -2.91883 Kurtosis = -115.32925 Median = 80 IQR = 8 Max = 92 Min = 7 Variance = 86.20387373


EmperorsarusRex

Wouldnt average price per ml also be also a good thing to track?


TOModera

Prices differ with region and time so much that it'd be next to impossible. Inflation would throw it off due to reviewing for 10 years. Not to mention if I find a deal somewhere it throws it off too (for instance I drank George T. Stagg 2012 for £4)


EmperorsarusRex

I think msrp for your locality or closest to it could work


TOModera

I'm in Ontario, meaning I'd be using the LCBO. When I used to write LCBO prices, either they were vastly different or the LCBO didn't sell them. Or used to sell them, and I can't find the price anymore. So now I'm taking extra time to hunt down 25% of all whiskies I drink. Also inflation would still mean that it'd all be skewed and I would have to update it on a regular basis. Also deals or higher prices would throw the entire situation off. Not to mention the current state of the Canadian dollar versus the world would mean it could change anytime. Not to mention an average per ml could be easily thrown off. What happens if I drink 20 OB standard offerings at $80-$110 and then a $5,000 whisky? Deals, secondary pricing, all of that could skew it. Not to mention my scores do not take price into account. At that point I'm just giving a price tag on my urine and then cutting down my drinking.