There are few names in whisky critic circles that possess the gravitas, respect – or resplendent moustache – as the great Serge Valentin of Whiskyfun. Serge’s reviews has for over 20 years been the mainstay of connoisseurs looking for a highly rated whisky, or rum, to squirrel away – or for shops to recommend to their own customers. He regularly appears at the helm of Whisky Live Paris, hosting sell-out masterclasses on all manner of spirits from whisky to cognac. A fine score here can help establish a distillery’s reputation, and we have been immensely fortunate to have not one, not two… but now eight highly rated whiskies that clock in at 90 points. This is a rating ordinarily bestowed upon whiskies some twenty or thirty years of age; venerable old one-offs, single casks perhaps, rare and expensive bottlings. Of the some two dozen Waterford Whiskies tasted, nothing has been rated lower than 87 points, and a third have 90 points.

Though our distillery age profile is rising each year, our new and often youthful single malts have pleasingly punched far above their weight for any new distillery; and we’re incredibly proud to have been consistently ranked so highly by Serge. In celebration of the latest new 90-pointers, and because one or two of you have asked us for it, we rounded-up many of Serge’s top Waterford Whisky ratings – our very own Whiskyfun “Hall of Fame”.

Biodynamic Cuvée Luna – 90 points

An intriguing blend from three farms practising biodynamics. We had a soft spot for the first release back in 2021, Luna 1.1 (WF90). I know some biodynamic winemakers in Alsace who swear you can see the wine moving in the barrels with the phases of the moon. But let’s taste this new Luna without consulting any anthroposophical calendar to check if it’s the ideal moment… Colour: white wine. Nose: absolutely pristine, like a barely cooled fruit-studded brioche, paired with a delicate touch of soft spices. I find this precise simplicity quite stunning. With water: a hint of Williams pear emerges. Mouth (neat): quite different from the nose, much fruitier, with a light caramelised edge and even a bit of smoke (heavily toasted wood). Very good. With water: a maritime touch appears, a bit of vanilla, and perhaps a small glass of manzanilla (nuts, mustard, curry). Finish: carries on in the same vein, with just a hint of apples in the aftertaste. Comments: no point, nor even possible, to say whether this Luna or the Heritage is superior. I suppose the next step is to grow Goldthorpe barley biodynamically.

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Heritage: Goldthorpe – 90 points

Well, we’re moving from single farms/estates to single varietals, which is rather intriguing. Goldthorpe is a rare centennial variety, reintroduced by Waterford in collaboration with the Irish Ministry of Agriculture, apparently starting from just a single small packet of seeds. There’s a delightful Jurassic Park vibe to the whole thing, though presumably with far less danger involved. Let’s see if the fracas of time can be felt in the glass… Colour: white wine. Nose: hard to pin down, should’ve sampled the new make first. It comes across as fairly oily, with a lovely citric profile, hints of chives, dill, lemon-mint, then some green melon and even a touch of Petit Manseng. With water: more melon and lemon, a bit of damp earth. Mouth (neat): starts off both citric and oily, then quickly ramps up into a bold, herbal character with an almost mezcal-like quality, though without the smoke. It scrapes the palate a bit, but in the most pleasant way! With water: it softens, as one would expect. Finish: long, increasingly lemony—absolutely delightful. Comments: it feels a bit strange to sip on such a historical – and splendid – whisky as though it were just any other dram. Surely, this deserves at least a lecture, if not an entire seminar, delivered by some wild-haired, veteran university professors. Still, we absolutely love it—it’s cutting-edge… History.

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Single Farm Origin: Hook Head – 90 points

These blue bottles are splendid, once they’re empty, for use as decanters during your blind wine tastings. Provided, of course, that the glasses are blue or black as well. But try finding a quality blue or black decanter, good luck with that! Right, we’re here with a single farm, with barley harvested in 2015, so this barley has rested for a long time before being brewed and distilled, which shows that a whisky’s vintage doesn’t really have much to do with the barley’s year of harvest, we’re not in Cognac. Colour: straw. Nose: as usual with Waterford – usual, a word that demonstrates how well Waterford has already become part of the landscape – we’re on bread, cereals, beer, earth. Moist earth, rainwater, baker’s yeast, even pizza dough. Irish pizza, naturally. This time, we remain fully focused on these bakery aromas. With a bit of water: a hint of lemon comes through. That always works. Mouth (neat): we’ll keep this short and sweet, limoncello biscuits and panettone. Well, after the pizza, here are some other Italian elements. And I’d swear there’s also just a hint of spicy salami, I can’t remember what they call it on the other side of the Alps. With water: it’s more concentrated, more tense, but it remains a very textured and rather rich spirit. I’d like to rub a bit of new make spirit between my fingers, just to see how it behaves… Finish: long, on fresh bread, amaretti (undeniably) and citrus fruits, this time more on clementines than lemons. Saltier coastal touches right at the end. Comments: it’s very relatively restrained, not the most expansive Waterford I’ve ever tasted, but I like this discreet and confident elegance (what?) rather a lot. And the purity of the whole.

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Micro Cuvée: Der Wanderer – 90 points

Will this one truly be Schubertian? I remain partial to Fischer-Dieskau I have to say, the old guard… Naturally, this is a bottling for Germany. Colour: gold. Nose: talking to Nature indeed. I know they have their own very specific cask-bill, but the barley’s doing all the talking at first here, before some pretty Alsatian, or say Germanic kind of fruit bread would make its mark. Pears, figs, bananas… With water: chalk, grist and sourdough, one of malt whisky’s most seminal trios. Even if Der Wanderer is a piano + voice duo. Mouth (neat): yes. With Waterford you have to go beyond the ooh-ah-look-at-me packaging and imagine it was bottled in one of those lousy ‘whisky bottles’ that everyone’s using. Impressive salty bread, peppers, fennel, caraway, soft curry, poppadum, seawater… With water: just perfect. Breads, cereals, coastal things, etcetera. Finish: long and saltier yet. I’d swear someone’s poured five litres of seawater into each and every cask. Go on, prove me wrong! Comments: here’ a tip, you could make a lovely ‘sauce vierge’ using this romantic little Traveller, by adding a few drops to your olive oil. Yep, guaranteed.

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Heritage: Hunter – 90 points

I must have downed one full bottle of this little Heritage Hunter already, time to write a tasting note (S., you lazy ‘blogger’…). Please note that this has nothing to do with someone hunting down heritage (although…), Hunter being the name of some ancient barley created in 1959 and abandoned twenty years later, sacrificed on the altar of yield. I find it superb that they would revive those old strains, as they also do at Holyrood, for example. Colour: straw. Nose: immediate impact, there aren’t many whiskies that would be this close to the raw materials. Exceptional breadiness, chalk, Meursault, overripe pears, homemade limoncello and citron liqueur, some savoury, almost slightly funky touches (miso, high-ester rum), a handful of dried kelp, garden earth, a touch of wormwood… No actual changes with water. Mouth: a fat, sweet spiciness with bags of Zante currants, never vulgar, some rich stolle, orange cake and marmalade, gingerbread, French toast, and indeed a growing breadiness, around fruit breads. I mean, farmhouse bread with bits of fruit. It never begs for water, but this is our duty… With water: add citron liqueur with a little turmeric. Finish: long, with a few more Zante currents. Aftertaste a little drying (tea, oak, four). Comments: I think there was some VDN inside, may we also try one of these, fully ex-refill? Anyway, I believe we’ll crack another bottle open before Christmas…

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Biodynamic Luna 1.1 – 90 Points

I first tried this one at Whisky Live Paris this year and found it that good that I included it amongst my three ‘coups de coeur’ as I was doing a wee tutored tasting session there (what they call a masterclass, imagine). As for what biodynamy/biodymamics is, let’s say you could see it either as a rather esoteric way of growing plants, taking the moon and other ‘funny’ aspects into account, or just as an ueber-organic method that, incidentally, is now being used by many of the most prestigious wine estates in the world, while some wouldn’t even tell you. In truth, beyond what’s in the glass, biodynamy keeps the land alive for the future generations. Good, if you don’t mind, let’s not start a (very silly) book about biodynamy… Colour: barley straw. Ha. Nose: pear cake, tarte aux poires, pear pie, pears poached in pinot gris, pear paste… Then a little hops and sweet brioche dough, a touch of limestone gravel, grist… With water: all things cereals, with some chalk too, including husk, plus fat citrons and lemons. We’re almost in the neighbourhood of Pouilly-sur-Loire.  Mouth (neat): this is what I had noticed in Paris, this fatness, this thicker mouth feel, this feeling of having some kind of (unroasted) sesame oil with a little honey and orange blossom water in your mouth… Plus, naturally, pear pie. Or, there, Irish upside down pear tart. Irish tatin! With water: the best part, it’s just a bed of barley and oils. Water made it even fatter. Finish: rather long and, as almost always with young whiskies, a tad greener, more bitter, more on fruit peel, especially apples (rather than pears). Comments: it’s the texture, it’s alive! Still much impressed, and that’s not because I wouldn’t want to go back on my Parisian decision, cross my heart.

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Organic Gaia 1.1 – 90 Points

Gaia as in Gaia the Earth, mother of Uranus? Will this drop make us all immortals? How much of it should we quaff to make that happen? Colour: straw. Nose: I have the feeling that this one’s a little less, say emphatic than the single farm expressions, but also (even) better constructed, tighter, focused, slightly fat (malt whisky ought to be fat) and really on fresh grains, proper baguette (sorry) and sunflower and hazelnut oil. Banana skin. Hazelnut oil is actually very obvious here. With water: do I find anchovies, clay, and sesame oil now? Mouth (neat): very good, if a tad lighter now. Hints of butterscotch (the oak I suppose) and smoked fish. Turmeric, barley wine, touch of salt. In truth I am impressed, how old is this? I suppose a good copywriter would answer ‘billions of years’ as it’s all about Mother Earth. De nada. With water: takes water extremely well. Finish: medium to long, clean and very bready, with a drop of Meursault. Were some actual pièces used here? The salty touch in the aftertaste drives it home. Comments: extremely impressive, and I mean it. And it’s not all about cask magic.

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Single Farm Origin: Grattansbrook – 90 Points

I see no vintage on this new bottle and cannot not wonder if that’s normal and sound that Waterford would have become Kings of Ireland this fast. Now, some names are really funny, I mean, Grattansbrook, that’s singular! Colour: white wine. Nose: the raw materials, and most possibly ‘terroir’ even amplified. Breads, banana skin, some sweeter porridge, pumpernickel and muesli, Austrian riesling, toasted beech chips, semolina… Frankly, I couldn’t tell you why, I’m finding an Austrian side to this one. Hope they won’t take umbrage at Waterford. With water: entering a bakery at 5:30am. The smells of dozens of different fresh breads, all still warm. Mouth (neat): I know some good folks believe I’m exaggerating with my assessments of Waterford. I am not. I find this perfect. Citron is perfect, breads are perfect, doughs are perfect, everything’s perfect in my opinion. I haven’t even checked the ‘cask-bill’ (yet a new whisky term, ha) but I just don’t care as long as you do not feel it. With water: candied bits of grapefruit and salt. Finish: long, spicier. Perhaps a wee tad too spicy/oaky? Was some French oak involved at some point? Comments: let’s find something bad to say. Good, I find the blue of the bottle a little too dark, I would have gone for Pantone 19-4052 Classic Blue instead. No? Other than that, I’m finding this one a little more citrusy than others, but I’m not actually comparing them, while only comparison is reason. Right.

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