Westward American Single Malt Whiskey
- Jeffrey Lavallee
- Jun 30
- 3 min read
VA ABC- $74.99
Total Wine - $84.99
45%ABV
From the VA ABC - Created from two-row barley grown and malted in the American Northwest, fermented with craft ale yeast for outstanding flavor, double pot distilled for exceptional character, and matured to perfection in new, heavily toasted, and lightly charred American Oak barrels. This whiskey boasts flavors of toasted nut, stone fruit, and toffee.
Westward distillery is located in Portland, Oregon. It’s a relatively new distillery just celebrating their twentieth anniversary. Supporting our younger distilleries is important. It’s great to experience the different experiments that the younger distilleries have to offer. There are no rules and the sky’s the limit. But with a single malt, the goal is to stick to the very proper and up-tight rules that go along with a scotch. Because of the difference in water, yeast, types of barley, barrels, and aging environment (near the ocean, altitude, how hot does the summer get/how cold does the winter get etc), adhering closely to the single-malt rules can produce vastly different whiskies - and that’s an important part of the fun of single malts. Do a tasting with Westward’s single malt and compare it to a similar scotch and you’ll see what I mean.
Like I said, the rules for single malts can be somewhat stuffy. I like having that and the more-liberal, wild distillates that are reaching the market. Believe it or not, there’s such a thing as the American Single Malt Commission. I learned that from the Westward website. Never heard of them before. Anyway, these are the rules they’ve set out for the production of whiskey that is called American Single Malt. I added an explanation after each bullet.
Made from 100% Malted Barley. - While there’s no mention of a pot still, no other grains are permitted that will produce more alcohol for the distiller, but would alter the flavor of the distillate. Blends are great, but the single malt distillers want to stick with malted barley only.
Distilled entirely at one distillery. Shipping in extra alcohol from an industrial distiller is prohibited.
Mashed, distilled and matured in the United States of America.- Easy enough to understand
Matured in oak casks of a capacity not exceeding 700 liters.- Generally, the smaller the barrel, the quicker the distillate will mature. There is a point of diminishing returns and your booze might age differently than if it was in a larger barrel. The American average is a 53-gallon whiskey barrel. In this case the barrel is not to exceed 700 liters. Westward ages their whiskey in a standard American-sized barrel. I’ll be honest and tell you I’m not sure what this requirement is about. If you know, I’d love to hear from you in our Discord chat.
Distilled to no more than 160 (US) proof (80% vol) - if you distill it above a certain ABV, you’ll no longer have whiskey, you’ll be making something closer to vodka. Aging vodka is a terrible idea (I’ve tried it). There are things that vodka makers consider pollutants and whiskey makers consider tasty. To get those tasty pollutants, you need to keep the ABV down below a certain level.
Bottled at 80 (US) proof or more (40% vol.) - Whiskey makers can’t put distillate into a barrel if it’s too high in ABV (as discussed above). When it comes out of the barrel it’s still got a high ABV and most would not enjoy such strong alcohol. So, they cut the barrel-strength whiskey with the same water that they make the distillate with. Most folks prefer that and the whiskey goes a longer way when you cut it. However, it’s now common for a distiller to market a ‘barrel-strength whisk(e)y’. This allows the drinker to enjoy the whiskey like the master distiller intended. I recommend trying a barrel-strength whiskey, but have some cool drinking water available to cut the pour until you get to the strength that you prefer (this is common among professional tasters).
Westward American Single Malt is a delicious American dram. There are many other American single malts. Soon we’ll feature one closer to home.
