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Mat Thomson opening the barrel at the Glengarry Malt Club. Photo: Aroha Jakicevich
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Tash McGill is a spirits and hospitality writer who regularly hosts tastings and education classes for those wanting to know more about spirits and their uses - from cocktails to culinary food matches. She has been in the spirits and cocktail industry for more than 10 years, writing, tasting and judging competitions. 26 THE SHOUT NZ – NOV/DEC 2020
here’s nothing quite like seeing Mat Thomson, of Thomson Whisky, take to a barrel with his cooper’s hammer. He picked up the empty barrel - which was originally from America - way back when, but brought it out for a special viewing at The Glengarry Malt Club last month. It was a return home of sorts, he said, given that his curiosity about making whisky got a good kickstart by attending The Glengarry Malt Club back in the early 2000s. Returning to the Malt Club in 2020 with Thomson’s brand new limited edition release of FIVE (their five year old New Zealand Single Malt) inspired Mat to bring along the barrel that FIVE was aged in. Much like a five-year-old at showand-tell, the film set carpenter turned whisky-maker, cooperer and copper pot still maker came alive with the cooper’s hammer in hand, swiftly raising the hoops
and allowing the staves to breathe and fall gently open. The whisky enthusiasts gathered round. A five year old whisky may not sound very old at all, but it’s about the same collection of feelings a parent might express getting a firstborn off to primary school – accomplishment, possibility and incredulity at where the time has gone. Time is a big deal in whisky circles, especially given that every passing year not only ages whisky in the cask but also adds another distillery or two to the somewhat extensive list of New Zealand whisky distilleries. For Thomson, who started in 2009, bottling some of Willowbank’s old stock, the release of a five year old whisky made by their own hands and in the cooper pot still that Mat shaped by hand, is cause for celebration. With an already impressive collection of 13 international and homegrown whisky medals and awards, this year, Thomson Manuka Smoke took