The Balvenie tasting

Now since the Shepard’s pie is simmering I can drop a line about our latest whisky experience.

It was supposed to be a whisky blending experience, first a tasting of 5 drams and then a blending exercise with a winner announced at the end. However, upon our arrival it was announced that the original line-up was changed completely.  Nevertheless, my missus put her foot down and insisted on attending the event (I know... lucky me...). After a tough working day she was looking for something what can be qualified as a reward and I have to agree I filed no complaints from my side whatsoever !!! The Balvenie isn't something we would consider for consumption on a regular night out. However, somehow there was this mutual gut feeling that we'd rather go for it.

Back to business. Few whiskies were lined up including a new spirit. Here I have to highlight that I appreciate these new spirits a lot when it comes to tasting them in small quantities. At the end of the day it is the material what whisky is coming from. However, then distilleries start selling them for mass consumption, it looks like people care more about quick quid rather than a good whisky. To be honest I know some brrriliant providers of quality moonshine and it doesn’t taste any worse than most of these new spirits. What matters more is the transformation of this spirit into the whisky.

Anyway, if you are after a good dram – drop me a line, I shall give you some tips. If you are after a good moonshine – again drop me a line, I have some quality manufacturers :)

Here we go. So we had a 12 yo The Balvenie for a start. I thought it was quite nice and fruity with some honey and vanilla notes. Spicy on the pallet with some hint of sherry fruits and cinnamon. Finish was quite warm but not too long. I thought it could serve as a pretty good aperitif. A bit sharpish though. Good start. Keen to go further. The Balvenie 12 yo DoubleWood. Great on nose. No offence, quite welcoming and enjoyable. Sweet with fruit notes followed by some honey and vanilla. Tempting. On the pallet it is another ‘dangerous’ whisky, i.e. very smooth and mellow, great flavours of sweetness with some cinnamon notes, greatly complimented with light sherry fruitiness. Again another perfect dram for a whisky novice. Not too offensive or challenging, and very enjoyable indeed.

I forgot to mention that we had a guy from The Balvenie distillery to do the tasting. Having previous experience of some brand ambassadors being style over substance (or as some say, ‘All fur coat and nae knickers’), I was tempted to get to quick conclusions, but luckily I didn't. Andrew was excellent. Very professional, passionate about The Balvenie, knowledgeable and to the point. A fantastic brand ambassador I have to admit. His presence definitely contributed to the greatness of the tasting.

Next we tried The Balvenie new spirit and it was still enjoyable despite of being quite pungent (over 70%). Very fresh with some straight from the vine cucumber and vinegar notes. The most entertaining part about new spirits is to put some of it between the palms and rub hard until it evaporates. Usually it leaves you a smell of a fresh baked black (rye) bread. Lithuanians should know what I mean.

However, the night was picking up as we moved to The Balvenie15 yo Single Barrel. It was a great dram. I thought, if you take The Balvenie 12 yo and saturate all the sensations – this is exactly what the 15 yo is about. Firstly, it welcomed you with some lovely vanilla and honey sweetness on the nose. On the palate it was well rounded with rich and complex fruit flavours which clearly suggested years of careful maturation. Some rich honey and vanilla notes with some spiciness at the end. Quite enjoyable dram with nice warm finish. One of autumn – wintery whiskies I would say.

I was waiting to try the next dram though... The Balvenie 21 yo finished in Port Cask. You know, when I have tried this I thought I could imagine myself in a nice log house sitting in a swing chair with some warm tartan cover and silently crackling wood in the fireplace....Yummy...very nice dram with dried fruits and dark berries on the nose. On the pallet it is very well rounded, creamy and smooth. Very warming finish with fruit, honey and spice notes. Perfect dram for sitting in that swing chair and enjoying a nice dance of snowflakes outside the window.....

Winner of the night? You will be surprised as I was. A few actually. First of all it was Andrew. Excellent presentation. Then DoubleWood – great for beginners. 21 yo – yummmy... Seems like The Balvenie has ticked quite a few boxes!