Even the most casual of craft beer drinkers in central Virginia know that when Hardywood releases their limited seasonal stock of Gingerbread Stout (100 points in Beer Advocate), Richmonders lose their friggin' minds. Beer aisles all over town are besieged like Black Friday shoppers scrambling to nab the last Tickle-Me Xbox. On this day alas, I struck out. Uninspired by infinite varieties of pumpkin beer, and burned out on Oktoberfest marzen lagers, I wandered through the import aisle to the Scottish section.
Among the old stand-bys (Belhaven, Tennent's, Innis & Gunn), I noticed a beer I had never come across: Orkney Skull Splitter. It's a wee heavy/scotch ale (8.5% ABV) from the Orkney Islands, featuring a menacing cartoon barbarian on the label. Sort of that same Nordic bad ass vibe Orkney distillery Highland Park strives for with their marketing, and so I was reminded of my disappointment when their HP 12 struck me as 'all helmet, no Viking'.
Scapa's self-appointed moniker, 'the' Orcadian (the quote marks are theirs), also reflects their efforts to separate themselves from their more familiar neighbors. Located on the Scapa Flow, an enormous natural harbor near Kirkwall, the Scapa Distillery itself appears starkly industrial considering its picturesque surroundings.
An unusual feature of its inner workings is an old Lomond wash still (one of 2 still in use, the other added by Bruichladdich in 2010). Too labor intensive to maintain, it has since had its rectifier plates removed in order to function as a traditional pot still. Scapa does not use peat-smoked malt, but its water source is significantly peaty in its own right to impart a hint of its flavors.
Their original core expression, Scapa 12, met the same fate as Glendronach 12 due to a decade of mothballing at the distillery. In 2004, the stock was eventually re-released as Scapa 14, and after adding an additional 2 years in first fill American oak bourbon casks, was again re-launched in 2009 as the Scapa 16 staring up at me out of a Glencairn glass on this unseasonably warm November day.
Taking in a long whiff, I can tell already what the primary flavor of Scapa 16 will be - honey. Beyond that lies a dry heathery, hay loft aroma that promises a distinctly Highland profile. Light smoke, but certainly no peat at this juncture. I was expecting to get more salty notes from the maritime climate, but maybe it was masked a bit by all that honey sweetness and the faint citrus that opened up after a few minutes.
Huge hit of honey on the palate, with some ginger tagging along. My wife loves Ardent's Honey Ginger Saison, so that flavor profile is instantly familiar to me. The smoke registers more, but now I'm picking up that bare minimal peat on the palate. Not getting much fruit, but certainly a full-bodied cereal grain maltiness in its place. Elegant and laser smooth. I can't decide if it's the longer cask aging, low ABV (40%), or the chill filtration responsible for that. No matter, anyway you slice it, this is a very approachable single malt.
The finish was dry and short, but did offer a glimpse of the oak character as well as a quickly dissipating hit of briny sea salt right in the back. Zero bitterness, that might be a first. This is some easy drinking whisky. Maybe too easy, an open bottle of this could be trouble. For a distillery located further north than Moscow, they sure nailed the whole summer whisky thing. In this case, you can judge a book by its cover. I can see bringing Scapa 16 down to the Outer Banks, sipping pretty in one of those giant hammocks. Then you definitely don't have to worry about the sharks.
Overall Grade: 88/100, B+
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