ST. GEORGE SPIRITS SINGLE MALT
Lot No. SM025 (2025)MASH BILL – 100% two-row malted barley
PROOF – 86
AGE – blend of 5 to 13 year old whiskeys, aged in 28 different used bourbon, rye, apple brandy, rum, Port, and Sauternes-style wine casks; as well as whiskey from Lot 01, the first St. George Single Malt barreled in 1997 and released in 2000.
DISTILLERY – St. George Spirits
PRICE – $109
WORTH BUYING? – Always
OLD POTRERO CHRISTMAS SPIRIT
Limited Release (2025)MASH BILL – unstated 2015 Anchor Steam Christmas Ale
PROOF – 100
AGE – 9 years in used Old Potrero Rye casks
DISTILLERY – Old Potrero (Hotaling & Co.)
PRICE – Free! (My work paid for it 👍🏻 msrp is $140)
WORTH BUYING? – For a special holiday pour, absolutely.
It’s that time of year again. Time to crack open the latest release of St. George Single Malt.
This whiskey has been the annual winter holiday pour in my home ever since Batch SM017 reminded me of my grandmother’s Christmas cookies. From year to year the tasting notes swirl around certain core aromas and flavors. Each batch leans into one familiar aspect or another. And every year the blend is excellent. I don’t expect this year to be an exception.
That’s especially true given Lot 25 marks the twenty-fifth anniversary of the St. George Single Malt line. So it’s not just the label that’s been given some extra love. One notable feature in that regard is that some amount of the very first St. George Single Malt release, Lot 01 from way back in 2000, has been included in this blend. A true celebration of a quarter century of whiskey making and blending.
Also on the table is the second ever release of Old Potrero’s Christmas Spirit. Last year’s inaugural release was aged 12 years. This time it’s younger by 3 years, though again it’s distilled from Anchor Steam Christmas Ale and bottled in bond at 100 proof.
I picked this bottle up on my employer’s dime, to include it in the annual company holiday party. Each year I’m tapped to host a whiskey flight. This time I focused it on west coast American whiskeys—St. George Lot 25, Westward Tokaji Cask Finished, and Old Potrero Christmas Spirit.
We put quite a dent in this bottle that night, so there’s only a handful of pours left. Same with the Westward, which I contributed from my own stash. The bottle of St. George, which St. George Spirits itself contributed as a holiday gesture in the spirit of my work’s newly established relationship with them (we’ll be featuring their products in our bar) was the night’s big hit and got sipped down quite near to its end. I left that bottle behind for the bar staff to enjoy.
These are two very different whiskeys in terms of process and specs. But both are local to the San Francisco Bay Area, and both conjure the holiday season. The St. George Single Malt is of course not an official holiday release, unlike the Old Potrero. But for me personally, the general timing of when it drops each year and its conjuring of my Grandma’s baking has effectively made it such.
Let’s jump into some glasses. We’ll go in order of ascending proof, using traditional Glencairn’s for each.
Here we are with the St. George Lot 25, freshly uncorked and on its first pour. (This is not the bottle used for my work party but rather my own.) These notes were taken after letting the whiskey rest in the glass for about 30 minutes.
COLOR – brassy orange ambers
NOSE – thick cream, marmalade, fresh barley husks, vanilla-laced caramel, faint fizzy cola
TASTE – darker than the nose, with the cream and marmalade notes wrapped up in one another, adding milk chocolate and an old-fashioned sugar gummy candy note, a bit of candied ginger spiciness, all in a luxurious creamy texture
FINISH – marmalade on thick toast, light bitterness from the citrus zest and now some oak tannin
OVERALL – thick, decadent, elegant, quite befitting an anniversary celebration
This year I’m struck most by the dense creaminess of the whisky. The texture seems to help darken and deepen the aromas as they transition into flavors on the taste. The nice bitter notes St. George always offers are there. But they are tempered by that sumptuous creaminess. I’ve long associated a quince note with this whiskey. This year that aspect has gone full marmalade—related but with its own distinctions from the tough, pear-like quince fruit. I always enjoy St. George Single Malt. But this Lot 25 is definitely a cut above.
And now the Old Potrero. It’s nearing two weeks since uncorking, with only a handful of pours remaining. This pour also rested for about 30 minutes, though the bottle has been open much longer than the St. George and with significantly more air inside.
COLOR – buttery ambers
NOSE – bright, fresh, with lemon meringue, clove, orange zest, pine, cream, vanilla, milk chocolate fudge
TASTE – more subdued than the nose, though the same notes swirl about, emphasizing pine, vanilla, and the meringue, spiced with the clove and citrus zests, all carried by a silky texture
FINISH – bubble gum versions of the flavors and aromas up front; eventually a tart zesty and bitter note similar to the marmalade I get from the St. George only with a hoppiness added to it
OVERALL – bright, fun, and interesting, like a good and totally unpretentious holiday party
This is a wilder card than the St. George, with its almost rambunctious nose, popping with spices. Though pine can be a divisive flavor area, here I find it quite refreshing. Paired with the clove and citrus, it definitely conjures the season. It also makes the whiskey’s origins in Christmas Ale clear. And there’s that distinct hoppy note that really starts to pop on the finish. My sense memory of last year’s 12 Year edition is that it was a notch richer. But this younger sibling is no slouch. There’s plenty to enjoy here.
All in all, two very enjoyable winter holiday season whiskeys.
The St. George offers a more sophisticated vibe, with its darker tones and luxurious creaminess. The Old Potrero is comparatively more casual, taking a brighter approach and with a lighter, silkier feel to it. Yet both are very approachable. Whiskey fans and casual sippers alike could enjoy these. The fans have plenty to parse. And the more casual sippers have plenty to enjoy raising a rousing cheers with.
Serving these at a party, I’d offer the Old Potrero before the meal. Something to get people’s eyebrows up along with their spirits, and spur the chatting and laughing. After dinner, either as the dessert or served alongside it, I’d serve the St. George. Still fun, but a bit slower, calmer, ready to sink back into a chair, relax, and enjoy good friends gathered together.
Cheers! And happy holidays!
The Right Spirit 