Head to head · unusually close flavour match
Starward Nova vs Teeling Small Batch
One axis separates these two: sherried, 6 against 3.
Compiled by WhiskeyCask Editorial · Last verified 2026-07-30
Specifications side by side
| Starward Nova | Teeling Small Batch | |
|---|---|---|
| Category | World whisky | Irish blend |
| Origin | Victoria, Australia | Dublin, Ireland |
| Age | No age statement | No age statement |
| Strength | 41% ABV | 46% ABV |
| Cask | Australian red wine barrel | Ex-bourbon barrel, Central American rum cask |
| Bottle | 700 ml | 700 ml |
| RRP observed | £55 | £32 |
| Per 10cl | £7.86 | £4.57 |
| Per litre of alcohol | £192 | £99 |
| Chill-filtered | Not stated | No |
What separates them
Different countries: Starward Nova from Victoria, Australia, Teeling Small Batch from Dublin, Ireland.
Starward Nova is a world whisky, Teeling Small Batch a irish blend.
Neither carries an age statement, so neither discloses its youngest spirit.
Cask as each producer describes it: Starward Nova in australian red wine barrel, Teeling Small Batch in ex-bourbon barrel and central american rum cask.
Chill filtration: Starward Nova does not say, Teeling Small Batch is not.
What the price buys
Starward Nova is £23 dearer a bottle than Teeling Small Batch.
Strength keeps that ordering: £99 a litre of pure alcohol for Teeling Small Batch against £192.
Across the 32 bottles we can cost this way, Starward Nova is 26th cheapest and Teeling Small Batch 3rd cheapest.
Flavour, compared
View as table
| Axis | Starward Nova | Teeling Small Batch |
|---|---|---|
| Peaty | 0 | 0 |
| Sweet | 6 | 7 |
| Fruity | 8 | 6 |
| Spicy | 5 | 5 |
| Woody | 5 | 4 |
| Sherried | 6 | 3 |
| Cereal | 5 | 5 |
| Oily | 7 | 7 |
That is the only axis of the eight to reach 3 points. Next widest is fruity, 8 against 6.
Identical on peaty, spicy, cereal and oily.
Each bottle in its own right
Starward Nova
Red berries and chocolate from full red-wine-cask maturation. Unlike anything Scottish.
Fully matured in red wine barrels, not finished in them — and Starward sources the barrels 'within hours of being emptied', wet-filling new spirit while residual wine is still present. Grape varieties are not disclosed.
Full record →Teeling Small Batch
Vanilla and spiced rum sweetness at 46%, non-chill-filtered. Remarkable for the money.
Fully aged in ex-bourbon, then married in Central American rum casks for 'up to 12 months' — note that is a ceiling, not a fixed period.
Full record →No overlap in what we list them for: Starward Nova for something different and wine drinkers, Teeling Small Batch for value at 46%, first irish whiskey and highball.
Where these specifications come from
Producer and retailer pages for Starward Nova and Teeling Small Batch: starward.com.au, teelingwhiskey.com. Figures are what those pages published when we last checked them, on 2026-07-30.