“The Phoenix From The Flame”
Country: Scotland
Region: Highlands/Islay
Brand: Compass Box The Lost Blend
Type: Blended Malt Whisky
Age: NAS
ABV: 46 %
Colour: Bright Yellow Gold (Natural Colour)
Nose: Light and Fresh. The Earthy Peat, Ashes and Charcoal Smoke are there but certainly not in an overwhelming way. They sit sort of comfortably in the background. The principal Aromas are Sweet Barley, Caramel, Orchard Fruit, Herbs and Spices. I find Green Apples, Pear Drops, Chardonnay, light Vanilla, light Beeswax, Grapefruit, Lemon, Oak, Resin, Toast with Salted Butter, Fresh Herbs, Pineapple Juice, Ginger, Aniseed, Mint and Cinnamon. After a while I get some Floral Perfume. The Alcohol is reasonably well integrated. The ABV is spot on. On the Nose the Lost Blend leaves a pleasant, well-balanced impression.
Palate: Good and Spicy delivery. Again, the ABV works well. I find Sweet Barley, Buttered Toast, Golden Syrup, light Honey, light Earthy Peat, light Ashes, Wax, Pepper, Ginger, Aniseed, Nuts, Pineapple Juice, Citrus, Green Apple, Pear, Fresh Herbs and light Menthol.
Finish: Bitter-Sweet and Warming but on the Short Side. I find Sweet Barley, slightly Sour Green Apples, Vanilla, Soft Smoke, Dusty Road, Oak, light Pepper, light Cinnamon, Ginger, Gewurztraminer and Peach Preserves. Dry in the end.
No need to add Water to the Lost Blend.
Rating: 87
Nose: 22 - Taste: 22 - Finish: 21.5 - Overall: 21.5
General Remarks: In 2001, Compass Box launched their first Single Malt Blend called "Eleuthera", made with 80% unpeated Highland - and 20% peated Islay Malts. In 2004, Compass Box had to withdraw "Eleuthera" due to the fact that one of the key Malt components was no longer available to them. For almost 10 years the company tried to recreate the Blend but without success. In 2014 however a limited edition of only 12018 bottles was released under the name The Lost Blend. It contains Malt from Clynelish (80%) and Caol Ila (20%) as well as a very small quantity of approx. 19 Year old Spirit from the Speyside Distillery Allt-A-Bhainne that matured in American Oak Barrels. This limited edition was bottled in August 2014 without Chill-Filtration. It sells at around 100 US Dollars (November 2015).
Drinking Experience Neat: Good. Well-Balanced.
Conclusion: I have never tasted the "Eleuthera" but I'm glad I bought a sample of the Lost Blend. Compass Box did a good job in (re) creating this Malt. It's Fresh, Crisp and Well-Balanced. Apparently the Clynelish and the Caol Ila complete each other well. It's difficult to ascertain the influence of the small quantity of Allt-A-Bhainne. On the Nose there's a good balance between the Fresh Fruit, Fresh Herbs, Spices, Peat, Ashes and Smoke. On the Palate it's more Spicy than you would expect after Nosing. Personally, I liked it a lot. The Finish could have been a bit longer in my opinion. But all in all this is a very good Blended Malt that I can fully recommend. Despite the fact that it's quite expensive! I hope that Compass Box will be able to maintain it in its Product Line in some form or the other.
Jan van den Ende November 23, 2015
