In September 2024 Bimber unveiled the second launch of its Shoulders of Giants sequence. It pays homage to thinkers, innovators and visionaries who’ve formed our world.
We now have greater than six samples ready to be reviewed, however right now we’ll go for three pairs: two bourbon casks, two Oloroso casks and two Pedro Ximénez casks. To make these pairs, we additionally embrace Copernicus which is from the primary batch.
Thoughts that a whole lot of these bottlings are unique to a sure nation: Darwin, Winston and Victoria had been solely accessible within the UK, Ludwig in Germany and Witkiewicz in Poland.
Bimber ‘Ludwig – The Composer’ (58,7%, OB ‘Shoulders of Giants’ 2024, ex-bourbon cask #402, 242 btl.)
Nostril: fairly vibrant, with vanilla and wealthy stewed fruits. Apricots, pears on syrup and melons, in addition to hints of pineapple cubes. Then butter pastry (perhaps waffles) with minty notes and white pepper. Coconut cream and caramel.
Mouth: candy and spicy. Loads of vanilla once more, with barley sugar, crimson apples and candy citrus. Mid-palate the oak spices take over: white pepper turns into chilli, together with some alcohol burn. Contemporary oak shavings too, with a refined bitter edge and nutmeg. Very oak-driven, as much as the purpose the place it echoes American bourbon whiskey.
End: medium size, with sharp spice and beneficiant wooden. Hints of citrus rind and a refined astringency;
Energetic bourbon wooden, bringing loads of vanilla and much more wooden spice to the desk. The trademark Bimber fruits are additionally current. Good however the spice just isn’t very refined. I at all times noticed Beethoven as a sherry character, however this has a pleasant turbulence that matches him.
Bimber ‘Darwin – The Naturalist’ (58,3%, OB ‘Shoulders of Giants’ 2024, ex-bourbon cask #376, 259 btl.)
Nostril: comparable sweetness. Pastry notes, a touch of maple syrup and a great deal of vanilla. Then honey, apricots and mango. Hints of mocha cream and marzipan, in addition to candied ginger, white pepper and cinnamon.
Mouth: pretty thick, virtually liqueur-like at instances, with a whole lot of oak spice once more, however higher built-in than Ludwig. Butter pastry, crimson apples and candy orange sweet. Comparable minty bourbon notes and caramelized nuts.
End: medium size, with extra mint and aniseed. Citrus and banana sweet within the background.
Fairly fashionable once more, with a whole lot of lively wooden and a little bit of a hybrid profile. A giant profile and barely extra balanced than Ludwig. Rating: 86/100
Bimber ‘Winston – The Statesman’ (58,5%, OB ‘Shoulders of Giants’ 2024, Spanish Oloroso sherry cask #473, 302 btl.)
Nostril: very darkish aromas – prunes, blackberry jam and dates, with darkish chocolate and hints of sherry brandy. Chocolate coated raisins, hazelnut paste, black pepper and marzipan. Then a bit cherry liqueur too. Jogs my memory of some Glendronach single casks.
Mouth: loads of darkish forest fruits combined with darkish cocoa once more. Getting fairly leafy, with tobacco and hints of roasted nuts. A whiff of cask smoke even. Then some leathery dryness, espresso beans and just a little aniseed.
End: fairly lengthy and darkish, with darkish jammy fruits. Black pepper and lightweight tannins emerge as properly, however they don’t seem to be taking on.
Closely sherried, with a whole lot of chocolate. General it reveals stability of savoury notes and sweetness. A pleasant instance of how good seasoned casks can develop into. Rating: 87/100
Bimber ‘Witkiewicz – The Artist’ (58,7%, OB ‘Shoulders of Giants’ 2024, Spanish Oloroso sherry cask #460, 285 btl.)
Nostril: regardless of being peated, this has a barely lighter profile, with extra cigar bins and wooden polish however much less of that chocolaty weight. Blackcurrants and raisins, with hints of burnt vanilla pastry beneath. Fig jam, toast, just a little library mud and caramel.
Mouth: good tobacco notes, extra cigar bins and darkish sugar. Then extra raisins, black cherries and prunes. Now some chocolate too, together with cinnamon and dry smoke. This one jogs my memory of Highland Park. Dried fruits and hints of marmalade come out in the direction of the top.
End: fairly lengthy. Tobacco and delicate smoke, with black pepper and a berry sweetness.
Peated Bimber is sort of uncommon, but it surely combines properly with the sherry cask. General this stands out on this session – a pleasant spotlight already. Rating: 88/100
Bimber ‘Copernicus – The Polymath’ (56,8%, OB ‘Shoulders of Giants’ 2023, Pedro Ximénez cask #241, 300 btl.)
Nostril: extra elegant than anticipated. Dried fruits in fact – prunes, raisins, cherry liqueur and dates, but in addition a aromatic, virtually floral edge. Leathery notes maybe. Then hints of gingerbread, bramble and orange peels. Superb.
Mouth: typical PX sweetness. Blackcurrant jam, prunes, toffee and mocha sweet. Then again there’s additionally vanilla sweetness, maple syrup and a candy oakiness. Then ginger comes out, together with leather-based and milk chocolate.
End: lengthy, maybe a tad too drying. Transferring in the direction of espresso, stewed peaches and darkish cocoa, with a leathery be aware within the background.
This mixes PX notes with the heavyweight American oak markers. Keep in mind that is ‘merely’ a PX end so there’s at all times some bourbon wooden concerned as properly. Rating: 87/100
Bimber ‘Victoria – The Monarch’ (57,9%, OB ‘Shoulders of Giants’ 2024, Pedro Ximénez cask #450, 298 btl.)
Nostril: properly behaved once more. Hints of Kahlua, raisins, with black cherries and muscovado sugar. Among the blackberry jam and sherry brandy of Winston as properly. Then poached pear and whiffs of polished unique wooden.
Mouth: toffee with baked apple and milk chocolate. Then hazelnuts and latte notes, raisins and black pepper. It turns into fruitier after some time, but it surely shortly strikes again to brown sugar and cinnamon pastry.
End: fairly lengthy, with extra cinnamon and latte, however thinner than Copernicus.
Good whisky once more, however this appears to have a decrease complexity than the others. So there, no crescendo however good scores accross the board. Rating: 86/100
