Country: Scotland
Brand: The Black Grouse
Blended By: Matthew Gloag & Son Ltd., Perth
Type: Blended Whisky
Age: Unspecified
Alcohol: 40%
Date: 31/03/2012 + 06/09/2012
Colour: Full Gold
Nose: Be sure to give this Blend enough time to open up. The first impression is Earthy Peat and a whiff of Smoke, followed by Brown Sugar, Grain (Biscuits), Oak and Spices.
Taste: Sweet (Sugar and Honey), Toffee, Caramel, Oak, White Pepper and a bit of Smoke.
Finish: Not very long and somewhat dry Finish with some Cocoa, Oak, Lemon and light (Tobacco) Ashes. A light bitterness. Surprisingly, Wet Earth pops up after five minutes or so.
I added a few drops of water but it brings nothing new to the nose and the palate gets watered down. No need to add water to this blend.
Rating: 78.5
Nose: 20 - Taste: 20 - Finish: 19 - Overall: 19,5
General Remarks: This blend is a mixture of the Standard Famous Grouse (containing Macallan and Highland Park single Malt along with other grain- and malt whiskies) and additional Islay Single Malts. The Edrington Group owns the Blend. I believe they added the Black Grouse to their product range to try to compete with the Johnnie Walker Black Label fans. But although there are some similarities, I find the JW much smoother and balanced. The Black Grouse on the other hand is cheaper at around 30 US Dollars.
Drinking Experience Neat: Good
Drinking Experience On The Rocks: Okay
Conclusion: Jim Murray gives this Blend 94 points in his Whisky Bible 2011. Once again, I simply don’t understand where he’s coming from. This is a decent Blend for an acceptable price but I can’t find any debt or adventure here. The nose is basically Peat and Brown Sugar, the palate is mainly plain Toffee and Caramel with a bit of Oak and Spices and the Finish is short and dry and slightly bitter. The only thing that saves the Black Grouse from being totally anonymous is the light Smoke on the nose and the Wet Earth that suddenly pops up at the end of the Finish. So while it’s slightly better than The Famous Grouse because of the Islay accents, it does not come close to the smoothness and adventure of Johnnie Walker Black Label.
Jan van den Ende September 2012
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