Mackmyra distillery Is located at the picturesque Mackmyra Bruk Mill and was opened in 1999 as the first Swedish distillery. It was also the wolrd's most northerly distillery. Mackmyra whisky was the dream of a group of friends on a skiing trip in 1998 who asked the question "Why isn't there a Swedish whisky?". Their plans were formed after some research and Mackmyra was founded and began first distillation as early as 1999.

Ranges so far include the six 'Preludium' bottlings, the 'Special' and now Mackmyra whisky.

Photo by kind permission of Mackmyra Svensk whisky

General whisky characteristics: Light, floral and very intense

Mackmyra, 'First', 46.1% ABV

Typical cost of this bottle; €€€€€

Glass: Classic Malt

Colour: Very pale yellow

Nose: Very aromatic with intense malt and floral grasses.

Palate: Very smooth, light and intense with a floral mixture of juniper and light aniseed.

With 4 drops of water: Much more intense with a hint of rubber appearing on the nose and faint liquorice added to the palate.

Finish: Long and intense, even longer with the water.

Overall impression: A quite light whisky, but very intense at the same time. Another good and again different whisky from Mackmyra!

Mackmyra, 'Preludium 03', 52.2% ABV

(released Dec. 2006, 1 of  9096 bts)

Typical cost of this bottle; €€€€€

Dram-atics "Advent-urous" live review

Brief tasting note: A very fresh and 'clean' whisky with juniper and pine over a faint hint of smoke. I like this whisky very much and it's yet another different style from Mackmyra.

Revisited 13.12.2010 as part of my Advent-urous series of December drams

Glass: Classic Malt

Colour: Pale yellow

Nose: The grasses are still evident in the foreground, but so is the pine freshness of those Swedish forests. The juniper appears to be slightly more herbal than I originally detected.

Palate: Very smooth with grasses and hay followed by creamy aniseed which briefly visits and then fades to leave warming juniper.

With 4 drops of water: A little more grass and hay on the nose and a hint of wood appears on the palate.

Finish: Long, very long with grasses and hay following that warming juniper which leads into the finish.

Overall impression: Still a most enjoyable whisky, but also quite different.

Mackmyra, 'Bruks Whisky', 41.4% ABV

Typical cost of this bottle; €€€€€

Glass: Classic Malt

Colour: Very pale straw

Nose: Fruity. Quite intense cherry with freshly-cut wood, hints of banana skin, vanilla and extremely faint coconut in the background after some minutes. Some very light wood-smoke too.

Palate: Creamy mouth-feel with banana and coconut, followed by slightly bitter (or crisp) vanilla. Star-fruit, pear and a hint of cherry lead all this into the finish.

Finish: Long and fruity.

Overall impression: A good fresh and fruity whisky, albeit a little young yet.

Mackmyra, 'Special 06', 46.8% ABV

Released 2nd May 2011 ('about' 7y)

Typical cost of this bottle; €€€€€

Glass: Classic Malt

Colour: Light, fresh straw

Nose: Initially faint but quite rich, if you can understand that? It has a solidity about it too. This develops with time in the glass as it grows or enrichens to include floral herbs, faint liquorice root and perhaps the aromas of an old library holding ancient and musty first editions. There's faint coconut and vanilla in the background too.

Palate: Liquorice allsorts! Particularly a stub of liquorice surrounded by cherry flavoured coconut. Then comes a slightly spicy suggestion of black pepper. There's certainly more fruit on the palate than the nose.

Finish: Long and very fruity coconut.

Overall impression: I'm hooked on the cherry and coconut, I really like this one.

Mackmyra, 'Jord' (Earth), 55.1% ABV

To be released Summer 2011 ('about' 8y), 1470 bottles

Typical cost of this bottle; €€€€€

Glass: Classic Malt

Colour: Bright gold (21ct) / oak

Nose: Initially rich in fruits with dark cherries, grapes and plums. With time in the glass it becomes increasingly aromatic and even slightly perfumed. Somehow I'm detecting a mixture of red wine, grapes, cherries and sherry with some profound wood notes.

Palate: Woody leather, heather in full bloom. In fact this is really very meadow-like with just a hint of violets too. Green peppercorns add just a little spiciness.

With 4 drops of water: Much more aromatic wood on the nose, whereas the palate is smoother with more fruit, including a banana, apricot and mango cocktail with a decorative cherry on the side.

Finish: Very long, even longer with the water and always with lots of fruit.

Overall impression: Jord translates as Earth and in some ways this is indeed an earthy whisky. A great nose followed by a delightful palate makes for an excellent whisky which will be a limited release in the summer of 2011. My sample was a pre-release thanks to Angela D'Orazio, master blender at Mackmyra distillery and a live online tasting c/o twitter.

Mackmyra, 'Drivved' (Driftwood), 7y, 55.5% ABV

To be released August 2011, 1460 bottles

Typical cost of this bottle; €€€€€

Glass: Classic Malt

Colour: Yellow (9ct) gold

Nose: Lots of countryside. In fact I'm enjoying open fields and the Atlantic on a Cornish coastal walk with a little peach in the background, perhaps brought along for lunch. There's grass and hay in abundance before a slightly smoky and musty fruitiness develops on a bed of lavendar.

Palate: Rich and creamy fruit with melon, peach and vanilla. After a little further consideration this is more like a fruity ice cream with raspberry sauce. Some faint sandalwood too.

With 4 drops of water: Slightly smokier, mustier wood on the nose and not quite as much fruit. The palate gains in fruit and spiciness.

Finish: Long. Longer with water and more pepper right at the end.

Overall impression: Nice! Why can't all ice cream taste like this? But you'll have to wait until August 2011 when it will be officially released.