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Fahrenheit 173 - Aged Spirits
"If it's not good enough to drink slowly, then it's not worth drinking"
Six affordable blended Scotch whiskies | 30 Sep 2010 | ||
When it comes to Scotch whisky, like most people I prefer the single malts to the blends.
That said, I do enjoy a blended whisky every now and then.
Of course, most blends are quite cheap (and young!) and the older, really good ones are hard to find.
For this review I wanted to focus on cheap affordable whiskies for a change, so
I selected six lesser known blends without age statements. On to my notes, from worst to best:
Lauder's:
Youngish nose with malt and a note of linseed oil. Also a little rough, earthy and spirity. The palate is more mellow and
much nicer: sweet, creamy and malty with crème brûlée and toffee. All in all nice yet uneven. The malts are prominent yet quite young.
(77 p)
Dewar's White Label:
Fairly quiet nose with predominantly grain whisky, with notes of toffee, citrus and peat, also a bit dry/dusty/rye-like.
Light, sweet, smooth palate with toffee and apples. Rather nice finish with notes of liqourice and peat. All in all fairly young yet nice and more-ish.
(79 p)
J&B Rare:
Tea, apples, oak and hint of smoke on the nose. Quite mild palate, sweet, also a little oaky, spicy and youngish but with nice notes of black tea
and green fruits. The tea and fruits linger into the rather nice finish. All in all nice and complex but perhaps a bit splintered - quite entertaining though.
(79 p)
White Horse:
Malt, peat, and a note of oak on the nose. It's youngish and a bit rough, however. The palate is spicy, peaty, powerful but has a better balance than the nose
and develops nice notes of liqourice and toffee. Peaty but fairly one-dimensional finish.
(79 p)
Whyte & Mackay Special:
Nice nose with honey, dried fruits and a nice grain note, also a little oak. Mild, smooth palate with a note of gingerbread.
It's at first fruity, sweet and creamy, then drying and develops spices. Dry, spicy, hot finish. Married in sherry wood which makes it
sweet and smooth. It's impressively balanced except for the finish which is a tad too spicy.
(80 p)
Cutty Sark:
Nice nose with notes of citrus fruits, juniper, tree sap and a hint of peat. Light, sweet, smooth, rather nice palate with refreshing
notes of citrus fruits and a little oak. The peaty note returns in the finish together with the juniper.
(81 p)
Related link:
All my tasting notes on blended Scotch
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