2024-05-12 17:19:12
In the meadows in front of the farm, soaked in heavy rain, thousands upon thousands of Brent geese eat the fat they need to fly on to Siberia. Together with barnacle geese, they peck in the lush green grass while the fresh North Sea wind blows over the Föhr landscape. The sea water measures eight degrees, and the air is not much warmer on this day in April when Jan invites Hinrichsen into his house. When he opens the entrance door, warm, humid air immediately flows towards the visitor. It smells like a brewery. But the farmer by no means brews beer on his farm in Dunsum in the North Sea. Rather, the mash made from barley malt is a means to an end. Because Jan Hinrichsen makes whiskey. A single farm malt, to be precise. Recently one with an organic seal.
He and his family used to run the property as an adventure farm under the motto “Milk & more” – since July 2019 he has dedicated himself to distilling, although the family still breeds cattle: they use their manure as fertilizer for the young barley. The products are available in the farm shop and in the online shop, among other places. A year ago, Hinrichsen sold the first edition of his “Frisian”, which was limited to 630 liters. “First Batch” is what he called the 54 percenter. The so-called New Make from Dunsum had previously been available, a brand that cannot be called whiskey due to its low age.
Awarded as a “Sustainable Distillery”
It is now Hinrichsen a few steps further. His small business has just bottled the new substance. The “Distillers Cut” carries an eco-label and also received an “Icons of Whiskey” award this spring, which recognizes the company as a sustainable distillery. This medal was awarded by “Whisky Magazine”, in whose competition this year the Föhrers also came second in the “Single Estate” category behind a competitor from Denmark.
The term Single Farm Whiskey is not protected, as Hinrichsen says frankly. Larger producers in Scotland, for example, bought barley. However, his distillery only processes barley from the fields it cultivates on the North Sea island. In a good year, his family harvests around 40 tons from the almost 13 hectares; last year it was only 32 tons. The raw material from which the ingenious material will one day be made is correspondingly smaller.
How does Frisian taste this year?
The Hinrichsens do everything, from cultivation to malting the grain and making the mash to distilling. The farmer sees organic cultivation and malting under the roof of the farm as a greater challenge than distilling. Because he has to keep the herbs as short as possible without chemicals, with the chamomile and morning yellow also harvested contributing to the taste, as Hinrichsen says. The following applies to his products: “Every barrel is individual.” Or like this: every batch tastes different. This is intentional: “We need the curious to ask themselves: What does it taste like this year?”
For his organic Frisian, Hinrichsen married three spirits: he stored 80 percent in barrels made of American white oak, like those used for bourbon, and 15 percent in barrels that had previously seen white vermouth. The rest comes from sherry casks. At 54 percent, the company has also filled this Frisian into 0.35 liter hip flasks and will put it on sale in May. The eye sees a rather dark amber, the nose smells caramel, which is also evident on the palate. Regardless, whiskey immediately develops a warming effect in the mouth.
High percentage: The new one from HinrichsenScreenshot Hinrichsen
Spirits expert Julia Nourney, who lives in Oberursel, also tastes caramelized pecans, not forgetting almond marzipan and dark chocolate, dried dates and figs. The finish is dominated by vanilla and chocolate, along with caramel again. Organic Frisian is “like a liquid dessert”. And as with its predecessor, the malt note lingers spectacularly on the tongue for hours.
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