“Sweet and Innocent”
Country: Scotland
Region: Speyside
Brand: The Balvenie Caribbean Cask
Type: Single Malt Whisky
Age: 14 Years
ABV: 43 %
Colour: Golden
Nose: Quite Sweet with two main Aromas, Caramel and Fruit. I find Toffee, Caramel, Nougat, Buttered Toast, Tangerine, Pineapple, Orange, Banana and Papaya Cream. This Balvenie opens up with time and after a while I also find some Raisins, Nuts, Malt, Honey, Straw, Damp Wood, Earth and a tiny bit of Alcohol. The Rum Finish really adds some nice Tropical Fruit Tones.
Palate: Light and Sweet but also more Spicy than I expected after the Nose. I find Orange, Tangerine, Pineapple, Honey, Malt, Sugared Almonds, Toffee, light Oak, Cinnamon, Nutmeg and a hint of Aniseed.
Finish: Sweet and on the short side with some Fruit, Sugared Almonds, Honey, Malt, Vanilla Flavoured Toffee, Spices and a touch of Lemon.
With a bit of water the Nose becomes more Flowery. But in general this Single Malt does not improve with Water.
Rating: 84
Nose: 21.5 - Taste: 21 - Finish: 20.5 - Overall: 21
General Remarks: The Balvenie distillery was founded in Dufftown in 1892 by William Grant. It is still in the hands of the Grant family. The Balvenie lies at the heart of the Grant's Family Reserve Blend. The Caribbean Cask matured for 14 Years in Traditional Ex-Bourbon Casks before being transferred to American Oak Casks that previously held West Indian Rums. It mostly sells at around 70 US Dollars.
Drinking Experience Neat: Good. I was expecting more though!
Conclusion: I like the Nose but Palate and Finish aren't quite convincing. I don't think there's a whole lot of difference between the Balvenie Double Wood 12, the Single Barrel 15 and this Caribbean Cask 14. For sure, the latter one is a tad Sweeter and I'm sure there are other subtle differences when you put these three Single Malts under a Magnifying Glass. But, in my opinion, the 12 Double Wood remains the best value for money option.
Jan van den Ende February 27, 2014
10 comments:
A great review Jan! 84 is a solid score for the Caribbean cask, Value for money wise I think their single barrel 12yo is a cracking dram!
Thanks Joe! I haven't tasted the Single Barrel 12 as yet. Will try to get a sample somewhere! Thanks for Commenting!
Cheers!
Jan
Hi Jan! Ahh, you definitely should try and get a sample of the 12yo SB. It's a cracker! The Caribbean Cask seems to be one of the most popular Balvenie...only because it's quite easily in the supermarkets though I think....
Hi Jan, nice review. I recently had the chance to get a bottle of The Balvenie 14 "cuban selection" which has been discontinued as we now have this version. Rumors say it was because of the US embargo against Cuba... Well, I haven't tried it yet, but I am looking forward to it....
Best
Björn
Will do Joe! The Caribbean Cask is okay but certainly not great. And it's too expensive! At lasdt in my opinion!
Cheers!
Jan
Hi Bjorn, it is being said that the Cuban Selection was much more intense and actyally better than the Caribbean Cask. So I'm looking forward to your opinion on the Cuban some day.
Cheers!
Jan.
Well, Serge Vallentin rated it 85 points...we'll see.
BTW, I hope you enjoyed carnival more than the "breeze from Islay" ;)
Cheers.
Björn
Hey Bjorn, Actually I don't like Carnival so I went to the Mountains! Much Better!
Cheers!
Jan
Hey Jan,
I hope your are enjoying Scotland - looking forward for your reports.
Meanwhile I have opened my Balvenie Cuban Selection and I have to say I really liked it. It is truly not a very comblex or "demanding" dram, but a very well crafted singly malt and the rum finish makes it a bit special/different to the regular Balvenies... actualy I would agree with Serge's rating of some 85 points. I think it is a very nice summer dram... well, otherwise I am also very impressed by the 12 year old Single Barrel and I thinky this might become my favourite Balvenie in the future, although I very much like to Double Wood. Anyways, I don't know if I'll go for the Caribean Cask once my Cuban Selection is gone, but this one I surely will enjoy (and I got for a reasonable price!).
Best Björn
Hi Bjorn, Just returned from Scotland yesterday evening. It was great! Look forward to my reports in the coming weeks/months! Glad you liked the Cuban selection. I didn't come across a sample during this weeks but I will keep on hunting. Chers!
Jan
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