Review #863; American Single Malt #18: Lost Lantern American Vatted Malt No. 1

This bottling comes to us by way of Lost Lantern, an American independent bottler doing some cool things in the space of American Spirits. Their focus on American Single Malt warrants some extra kudos as well. This particular bottling was a project of a blend of American Single Malts. However, this was no blend done at home by Lost Lantern. They gathered the founders of the 6 distilleries that made up this blend and spend the whole day blending and tasting from the barrels to come up with this final blend. The youngest barrel in this collection was 2 years, there was no chill filtering or color added. The following are where the 12 barrels are from:

Balcones – Waco, Texas

Copperworks – Seattle, Washington

Santa Fe Spirits – Santa Fe, New Mexico

Triple Eight – Nantucket, Massachusetts

Westward – Portland, Oregon

Virginia Distillery Co. – Lovingston, Virginia

The link below has all the details for all 12 barrels. Really a wealth of information.

Lost Lantern American Vatted Malt No. 1

ABV: 52.5%

Nose: Cocoa, Lemon Zest, Bready, Slight Vinegar, Soy Sace, Faint Leather, Orange.

Palate: Medium mouthfeel, Bready, Lemony, Cocoa, Vinegary, Leather, pop of black pepper.

Finish: Medium length finish, Bready, Cocoa, Vinegar, Allspice, Black Pepper, faint leather.

Rating: 7/10

I wasn’t sure what I expected coming into this but it wasn’t the product I got. The malty savory notes are great and well developed with just enough faint fruits to help balance it all out. I am not sure on the particulars of each barrel (would be fun to see) but I venture to guess a mix of New Charred Oak and used casks as the oak here is not too dominant. Overall, a great bottling from Lost Lantern.

1 | Disgusting | So bad I poured it out.

2 | Poor | I wouldn’t consume by choice.

3 | Bad | Multiple flaws.

4 | Sub-par | Not bad, but better exists.

5 | Good | Good, just fine.

6 | Very Good | A cut above.

7 | Great | Well above average

8 | Excellent | Really quite exceptional.

9 | Incredible | An all time favorite

10 | Perfect | Perfect