Jura Superstition by Jura Distillery
Whiskey Week! I realized that I had 7 whiskeys/whiskys here so thought I’d do a whole week of reviews on them. Hey, it’s made with malted barley just like beer. Oh, and just as a disclaimer, no matter what kind of whiskey/whisky it is, I prefer it with one ice cube so that’s how I’ll be tasting all of these.
For many years I thought I didn’t like Scotch. The first time I tried it was in college with my roommates. Glenfiddich, so definitely a good single malt. But it tasted harsh to me at the time so I poured tons of water in it which technically ruined it I’m sure but at the time I didn’t care since as I said I didn’t like it. I know this will sound cliche but it took going to Scotland to discover that I actually liked the stuff. The same thing happened to me with Belgian beer in Belgium. There’s just something about being at the source and trying things with a more adventurous and open mind.
My parents got me this bottle when they went to Scotland. Jura Superstition is from the Jury Distillery on the island of the same name. According to Wikipedia, it is a mountainous and sparsely populated island (red deer greatly outnumber people) with only one road. George Orwell lived on the island for a time and called it “extremely ungetatable.” This distillery was founded in 1810 but had a long period of inactivity before being revived in the 1960s.
Jura Superstition is described as “lightly peated” and I tend to agree with that. There’s a hint of that distinctive smoky flavor but it’s not overpowering. There’s a lot of warmth and spice to this whisky in the beginning. I could feel this in my throat and chest. As the ice cube melted this aspect started to mellow out a bit. I’d describe the other flavors as pure sea salt and a mix of orange and lemon zest. I also get a little bit of iron. It’s not the best dram I’ve ever had but Jura Superstition is still crafted well overall.