Review: High n’ Wicked Foursquare Mark X 2007 Finish Single Grain Irish Whiskey
Founded in 2019, High n’ Wicked is an importer and specialty bottler of Bourbon, Rye, Single Malt Irish Whiskey, and Single Grain Irish Whiskey. At the time of this review, High n’ Wicked produces a five year old Kentucky Straight Bourbon and Kentucky Straight Rye that are available year round, while its Irish whiskeys have so far been relegated to the brand’s “Singular Limited Releases,” one of which we’ll be reviewing today.
Released in 2024, High n’ Wicked Foursquare Mark X 2007 Finish is a limited edition Single Grain Irish Whiskey created in collaboration with Foursquare Rum Distillery in Barbados. The Single Grain Irish Whiskey was distilled in County Cork, Ireland in a continuous Coffey column still, utilizing a mash bill of 95% French maize (corn) and 5% malted barley. It was first matured in ex-bourbon barrels, then finished for six months in casks which previously held Foursquare Exceptional Cask Selection Mark X – 2007, a limited edition rum released by Foursquare in 2019.
High n’ Wicked Foursquare Mark X 2007 Finish Specifications:
- Spirit: Irish Whiskey.
- Classification: Single Grain.
- Age: NAS (No Age Statement).
- ABV: 50% (100 Proof).
- Mash Bill: 95% French maize (corn) and 5% malted barley.
- Cask Type: Matured in ex-bourbon barrels and finished for six months in casks which previously held Foursquare Exceptional Cask Selection Mark X – 2007 Rum.
- Other: NCF (Non-Chill Filtered).
- Price Paid: N/A (Sample from High n’ Wicked).
- MSRP: $79.99 for 750 mL.
Tasting Notes:
- Color: Straw.
- Nose: The rum cask influence is unmistakable. Aromas of banana, coconut, peach, and mango marry with brown sugar, caramel, molasses, sugar cane juice, and vanilla.
- Palate: Sweet, but not cloyingly. It opens with banana, coconut, peach, and mango, before transitioning to sugar cane juice, molasses, brown sugar, caramel, and vanilla. The rum influence on the palate is even more pronounced than on the nose, and if tasted blind, I would fault no one for mistaking this for rum rather than whiskey.
- Finish: The finish lingers with butterscotch, caramel, molasses, coconut, and peach.
This is one of the better rum cask finished whiskeys I’ve had the pleasure of tasting. Single grain whiskey and rum can share many of the same flavors, and here, the finishing process has amplified those shared flavors while enhancing them with complimentary notes from the rum cask finish.
This is not the most complex whiskey in the world, but it’s enjoyable, easy drinking, and affordable, and I suspect it would be a hit in mixed social settings with whiskey drinkers and non-whiskey drinkers alike. If you enjoy sweeter whiskies, or rum cask finished whiskies such as The Balvenie Caribbean Cask, give High N’ Wicked Foursquare Mark X 2007 Finish a try.
Rating: B (83-86%).