Lauder's Blended Whisky Review

               
              “Say It Laud, I'm Bland and I'm Proud"                            
Country: Scotland 
Brand: Lauder's
Produced by: Archibald Lauder & Co, Glasgow
Type: Blended Scotch Whisky 
Age: NAS (Probably 3 Years)
ABV: 40 %

Colour: Amber

Nose: Quite Light, almost like a Bottom Shelf Vodka. I find Young Grain Alcohol, Re-Fill Wood, Dusty Archives, Burnt Sugar, light Caramel, Nail Polish Remover, Burnt Toast, Nut Shells, Menthol and a hint of Lemon-Grass. I can't find any significant quantity of good Malt Whisky. It's cheap Blends like this that suffer the first (and the most) when demand for good Malt Whisky is high as it is now. After half an hour in the glass a little bit of Vanilla and Sour Grapefruit pops up but it's too little and too late to save the day.

Palate: Very Thin with Refill Oak, Vodka, Nut Shells, Burnt Sugar, Bitter Grain, light Caramel, Sugar and Straw. 

Finish: Short, slightly Edgy, Bitter-Sweet and quite Dry in the end with Grain, Straw, Burnt Sugar and a hint of Spice. The Alcohol is a bit Stingy.

There's not much to be killed but added Water gets that job done anyway! 

Rating: 69.5

Nose: 17.5 - Taste: 17.5 - Finish: 17 - Overall: 17.5


General Remarks: This Brand was originally launched around 1835 and is one of the oldest Brands still in production. Lauder's was developed by Archibald Lauder around 1815, soon after distilling was made legal. It contains Highland, Speyside and Lowland Malt and a lot of Grain Whiskies. I'm tasting this Blend from a miniature that I bought at the Gordon & MacPhail shop in Elgin. Its contents were bottled in 2009. Lauder's is cheap at around 15-20 US Dollars and comes in a nice distinctive bottle.

Drinking Experience Neat: Below Par.

Conclusion: The combination of mainly simple Grain Alcohol and Re-Fill Casks does not produce miracles. Lauder's is very cheap and you can't expect much more besides a nice bottle. It's not good enough to drink neat and it's too Bland to enjoy on the Rocks. I can only see this as a Mixing Alcohol for Cocktails. But for that purpose I might just as well use an even cheaper Vodka. 

Jan van den Ende                                                                          July 31, 2014

26 comments:

urido said...

Awful! like drinking motor oil. Could consume it only with a lot of coke.

Jan van den Ende said...

Yep, have to agree with you Urido. Thanks for commenting!
Cheers!
Jan

Tartan Spartan said...

It's effing GOOD with the cola, though.

Jan van den Ende said...

Lots and Lots of Cola!!!!!!!!!!!Cheers, Jan.

Anonymous said...

sorry fellas; as an American i find Lauders the miller light of scotch; a bit weak perhaps but still serves the purpose.

Jan van den Ende said...

Thanks for commenting. Would be nice if you would leave your name next time. I don't quite agree with you as I think it's a very weak Blend. It's cheap though, I grant you that. Okay for mixing!
Cheers!
Jan

Anonymous said...

Smooth. Silky. Light. Palatable. Introductory.

So what's the problem?

Jan van den Ende said...

Thanks for commenting! Would be nice if you would leave your name next time! If you like the Lauder's, great! Your palate and opinion are just as (un)important as mine. Personally I don't think it's smooth at all and it reminds me more of cheap vodka than whisky. It's very cheap but other than that I can't find any positive points. But hey that's just me! Cheers, Jan.

Anonymous said...

Good with ginger ale!

Jan van den Ende said...

Hi there , thanks for commenting. Would be nice if you would leave your name next time! Thanks for the tip!! Cheers, Jan.

Dave Edwards said...

First time tried it, very smooth and light. Sip it neat.

Jan van den Ende said...

Hi Dave, thanks for commenting! Glad you enjoyed it. Can't say I did. But hey, there's nothing as personal as taste! Cheers, Jan.🥃

Anonymous said...

lauders is the miller light of scotch and should be likewise; no more, no less.
robt trigg

Jan van den Ende said...

Thanks for your comment robb trigt. What can I say, it's Light indeed and it's cheap. But that's about it as far as I'm concerned. Cheers, Jan 🥃

Anonymous said...

lauders slogan should be "Lauders, Fuck You."

Jan van den Ende said...

Hi there thanks for your strong comment😜I take it you're not very impressed by this Blend. Well, neither am I. Please leave your first name next time. Much more fun. Cheers, Jan.🥃

Unknown said...

I actually like it. It may not be in the top class, but I enjoy drinking it.

Jan van den Ende said...

Hi there, thanks for commenting.Please leave your (first) name next time around. Just makes it a little more personal.Glad you like Lauder's. Not quite my thing I'm afraid. Your opinion is as important as mine though. Cheers, Jan.

Anonymous said...

Very light.. not good enough to feel like having whiskey. The lid gets free not getting tight now . Poor quality. Raman

Jan van den Ende said...

Hi Raman, thanks for commenting. Yep, I have to agree with you here. Certainly not a whisky I would recommend.
Cheers 🥃
Jan

Anonymous said...

I've honestly never seen such incompetent, terrible judgment. I know everyone has their own warped sense of appropriate and not trying to be mean, it's definitely no top shelf liquor made of 24 carat gold but it doesn't need to be nor is that what it goes for. It's genuinely not bad all things considered. Perfect really, I mean unless you're looking to get unnecessarily plastered like an ignorant toddler.

Jan van den Ende said...

Hi there,thanks for your honest comment. Please leave at least your first name next time to make it all a bit more personal. Your taste is of course as good as mine and I'm glad you enjoy Lauder's despite it indeed being a bottom shelf blend. It's a cheap blend of course and okay for cocktails I suppose. But that's all as far as I'm concerned. It's not good enough to enjoy neat or over ice IMHO.
Cheers🥃
Jan

Unknown said...

Jan van den Ende.....I wiished we could get together and share a few Lauders on the rocks, or neat. I could walk you through what you seem to be missing. This whiskey has a lot of character! The price point is misleading, it's actually very good value!
Since this will post as anonymous, my name is actually Donald J Trump.

Jan van den Ende said...

Hi Donald, good to hear from you as I suppose you have a busy schedule! I'm all for the Make Whisky Great Again movement but IMO Lauders does not qualify for that. But it would still be nice to discuss various topics with you. I will bring the whisky! Cheers, Jan.🥃

Anonymous said...

Perfect dave can't do that with Jan's Wodka. Were we intriguing together
RON ASHCRAFT

Jan van den Ende said...

Hi Ron, thanks for commenting. Sorry for the late reply but I was traveling. Glad you like Lauder's. Nothing wrong with that. It's just not my kind of whisky. You should have a dram together with Dave!
Cheers 🥃
Jan