Etikettarkiv: blended malt review

Peak 2 Peak, Unspecified

Peak 2 Peak

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ABV: 40 %
Origin: Scotland Unspecified
Type: Blended Malt
Bottles in collection: 0
Emptied bottles: 1
Impression: 2/5

Tasting notes
Nose: This is sweet and spirity. At first there’s a generic sweetness with a hint of liquorice and a very young spirity distillate. The distillate also brings some green fruits with it. When it settles in the glass the sweetness moves towards honey and creates a better balance overall. The spirit note remains which isn’t all that great. The liquorice is very pronounced and it mixes well with the green fruits and malt. This is a decent nose. It isn’t complex nor especially interesting.

Mouth: It starts out with a hint of coconut and a bitterness in the back. In between there’s a mix of sweetness and a very spirity distillate. It almost comes through as having grain whisky as a component. The bitterness soon become a black coffee note which is quite nice, and the fruitiness is helping it along. The maltiness increases over time as well. It feels weird and doesn’t have a homogenous character.

Finish: The transition is flat and a bit uneventful. The liquorice and fruits remain but the back becomes more sour. There’s a weird cardboard note arriving and at this point it’s not a great experience. The bitter coffee note comes back and at the same time the oakiness starts to appear. At first it’s a bit generic but it slowly moves towards a nice nutty finish. This is a so-and-so whisky. It’s a budget whisky and it really shows.

Additional information
This whisky is made from a mix of Highland, Speyside and Lowland whisky. It was aged in a mix of ex-bourbon barrels and ex-Oloroso casks.

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Auld Rare, Storm, Unspecified

Storm (Auld Rare)

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ABV: 43 %
Origin: Scotland Unspecified
Type: Blended Malt
Bottles in collection: 0
Emptied bottles: 0
Impression: 3/5

Tasting notes
Sample added to queue. Tasting notes pending.

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Additional information
This whisky is a mix of Speyside and Highland whiskies. It was made in 2011 for the Whisky Shack store on Isle of man.

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Unspecified, Unspecified Distillery, Waterproof

Waterproof

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ABV: 45.8 %
Origin: Scotland unspecified
Type: Blended Malt
Bottles in collection: 0
Emptied bottles: 0
Impression: 3/5

Tasting notes
Nose: This is sweet and spirity. At first there’s a layer of ethanol sitting on top of a sweet vanilla center part. When it starts to settle there’s a fresh yellow pear fruitiness added and the spirity layer decreases in intensity. There are baking spices slowly rising up with mainly a cinnamon note. Other notes found are ginger, grass, mixed dried fruits and an unidentified perfumey note. This is a straight forward nose. There’s a good amount of small things to discover, but it doesn’t feel deep or complex.

Mouth: It starts out with a mild toffee note and a spicy kick. After that there’s a mild peaty note coming up from behind as well as some darker ripe berry notes. It feels quite young at heart but it does carry some substance. Raisins, hazelnuts on one hand and fresher fruits and vanilla on the other. The oakiness is already detectable and it brings some new oak vibes along.

Finish: The transition carries the spicyness without spikes and emphasis lies on the fresh yellow pears with some cinnamon. The toffee still resides in the center and stays there for a good part of the finish. The oak is astringent and carries a new woodshop oakiness, hazelnuts and also some old oak furniture. The late finish is the best part of the experience. This is a good whisky. It seems like a mix of old and new casks, but the weighting between them feels skewed.

Additional information
The origins of this blended malt is not disclosed but it’s produced by Macduff International. It’s finished in traditional oak and ex-sherry casks.

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Japan, Nikka

Nikka All Malt

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ABV: 40 %
Origin: Japan
Type: Blended malt
Bottles in collection: 0
Emptied bottles: 1
Impression: 2/5

Tasting notes
Nose: This is sweet and malty. At first there’s a big round center of butterscotch and honey. There’s a ripe red apple note somewhere close behind. It’s very mild and there are no sharp edges what so ever. The oakiness is already present and it creates a thin layer on top of everything else. The butterscotch increase in intensity with time in the glass. This is not a complex nose and it is a bit bland and boring.

Mouth: It starts out with the butterscotch and a honey sweetness up front and a lemon sourness in the back. When the fruity note settles it becomes more like green apples. It feels a bit metallic and sharp in the background. It’s very dry and the oakiness is coming through very early. It soon basically takes over. The oakiness itself is not a pleasant one and it basically kills every other flavour.

Finish: The butterscotch comes through once again but is soon overpowered by the very dry and astringent oak. The oak is still not very nice and all that comes though in the finish is a metallic note in the back, presumed to be a telltale sign of a young distillate. This is an uninteresting whisky and it feels a bit over-oaked to push flavours through. The nose is the best thing about the experience.

Additional information
This is a vatted malt. The malts are from the Yoichi distillery and from the Miyagikyo distillery. It includes both pot stilled and coffey stilled malt from Miyagikyo. Cask type isn’t stated.

Famous Grouse, naked malt, Scotland, Unspecified

The Naked Malt (Naked Grouse)

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ABV: 40 %
Origin: Unspecified
Type: Blended Malt
Bottles in collection: 0
Emptied bottles: 0
Impression: 2/5

Tasting notes
Nose: This is sweet and fruity. At first there’s a thick layer of vanilla and dried fruits and berries. There are raisins as well as tropical fruits and lemons. There’s also cinnamon, a whiff of tobacco and a piece of sponge cake. Underneath, the distillate comes through as rather flat and uninteresting. There’s a metallic note coming through as well. It’s extremely top heavy and the sherry cask covers everything else. This is a nice enough nose, but it’s just a big fruity and sweet lid on top of a flat whisky.

Mouth: It starts out with the distillate peeking through with a surrounding sweet layer. It feels a bit young and spirity yet flat from the low ABV. The fruitiness is residing on the edges and stays there. It’s a fresher fruitiness than on the nose and reveals a larger portion of tropical fruits and lemon. The vanilla coats the palate together with a hint of the oakiness. The ripe notes can be found in the back but they are somewhat subdued. A slight spicyness will come for those with patience.

Finish: The sweetness carries over and are immidiately joined by a fresh oakiness and a hint of sulfur. The fruitiness is now once again leaning towards ripe and dried darker fruits. It doesn’t take long before the oakiness takes over and the late finish becomes very oaky and a bit clingy. There’s not much to it other than that. This is an ok whisky which is obviosly a cover-up. The (presumably) seasoned sherry cask is doing a good job, but in the end it just makes the whisky top heavy with a shallow bottom.

Additional information
This is the rebranding of The Naked Grouse. The malts used are not entirely specified but Macallan, Highland Park and Glenrothes are known. It’s finished in first-fill ex-Oloroso sherry casks.

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Copper Dog, Speyside, Unspecified Distillery

Copper Dog

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ABV: 40 %
Origin: Speyside
Type: Blended Malt
Bottles in collection: 0
Emptied bottles: 1
Impression: 2/5

Tasting notes
Nose: This is butterscotch and fruits. A thin layer of red apples and green pears sit on top of a base of butterscotch and vanilla. It’s quite young and ethanol driven. The butterscotch note is very prominent and keeps on growing with time in the glass. A fresh citrus perfumey note is filling the gaps between the other flavours. This is very straight forward on the nose.

Mouth: It starts out with the butterscotch up front and it feels very ”boozy” and young. A bitter tang switches the fruitiness from apples and pears to lemon peel and grapefruits. The oakiness comes in early and it’s somewhat astringent. It’s not as sweet as on the nose. Far in the back there are hints of assorted flowers.

Finish: A very uneventful first impact is soon replaced by the same butterscotch note as before. It almost tastes like a cheap blended scotch in the early stages of the finish. There is some apples in there, but they are overrun by everything else. After a few seconds the oak arrives and it’s a fantastic oakiness with peaches, plum kernels and a fresh juicy oak flavour. It lingers for a while and it’s by far the best part of the experience.

Additional information
This is a blend with 8 Speyside single malts matured in different cask varieties included. They are married together in american ex-bourbon oak barrels before bottling. It’s made in association with the Copper Dog Pub in the Craigellachie Hotel.

Douglas Laing, Epicurean, Independent bottlers, Lowlands

Douglas Laing’s The Epicurean

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ABV: 46,2 %
Origin: Lowland
Type: Blended Malt
Bottles in collection: 0
Emptied bottles: 0
Impression: 3/5

Tasting notes
Nose: Floral and sweet with a touch of honey, vanilla and sweet liquorice. There’s a note of fresh garden soil and a hint of seaweed in the background.

Mouth: Lemon, vanilla and honey. Nice and friendly. Slightly spicy on second sip with the oak becoming more present. The sweet liquorice is still in the mix.

Finish: Vanilla, honey sweetness and fresh oak with a hint of coconut. Not very complex but nice throughout all steps.

Additional information
The Epicurean is part of Douglas Laing’s ”Remarkable regional malts of Scotland” series. It’s a blend of malts from distilleries located in the Lowlands. It has natural colour and it’s unchillfiltered.

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Glen Orchy, Unspecified

Glen Orchy 8 YO – Pure Malt

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ABV: 40 %
Origin: Scotland unspecified
Type: Blended Malt
Bottles in collection: 0
Emptied bottles: 1
Impression: 1/5

Tasting notes
Nose: Mild, hints of vanilla, sherry and licorice, chalk.

Mouth: Tasteless, tiny amount of bitter oak, some sweetness.

Finish: Long finish of bitter oak.

Additional information
Glen Orchy is a brand sold at Lidl and is supplied by Clydesdale, which is owned by Whyte & Mackay. The content isn’t disclosed.