Balvenie Signature 12 Years Review

Country: Scotland 

Region: Speyside

Brand: The Balvenie Signature

Type: Single Malt Whisky

Age: 12 Years

ABV:  40 %

Colour: Full Gold

Nose: Rather Sweet actually with some Fruit (Peach, Banana and Orange), Buttered Toast with Apricot Marmalade, Malt, Sherry, Dried Fruits, Toffee/Caramel, Oak/Vanilla, Cocoa and Honey. Not bad but certainly not as smooth as the Double Wood. There's a slight harsh edge to the Nose.

Palate: Bit Thin. Sweet Honeyed Pastry, Spices (Nutmeg, Pepper, Ginger and Cinnamon), Butter, Dried Fruits, Vanilla/Oak, Dates. Again it' s not as pleasant as the Double Wood. I'm certain this spirit would benefit from a slightly higher ABV. 

Finish: Rather short and disappointing with Vanilla/Oak, Spice, Nuts, Toffee and Malt.

With a bit of water the Nose gets more smooth. Buttered Toast with Apricot and Vanilla are in the lead. Palate and Finish become too watery and slightly bitter.

Rating: 81

Nose: 21 - Taste: 20 - Finish: 20 - Overall: 20

General Remarks: This Balvenie expression was launched in 2008 to replace the 10 Years Founders Reserve. It matures in three different wood types i.e. Sherry, First Fill Bourbon and Refill Casks. Batches are then married together by the Balvenie's Malt Master David Stewart.

Drinking Experience Neat: Okay/Good

Conclusion: I expected way more to be honest. So far I quite liked the expressions of this Distillery but that's not so much the case here. It's not bad of course but it tastes a bit rough and unfinished. I have never had the chance to experiment the Founders Reserve 10 but when I compare the Signature to the Doublewood, the latter wins on all accounts. The Doublewood, although not at all complicated, is really smooth and always a joy to sip. There's always a bottle of it in my cabinet. The Signatory is perhaps a bit more elaborated on the Nose but I didn't like the slightly harsh edge there. On the Palate I found it too thin and the Finish is short and disappointing. I feel a bit sorry for David Stewart because I'm sure he put a lot of dedication into making the Signature. But I will stick to my Doublewood for the time being!

Jan van den Ende                                                           February 23, 2013

The Temple Bar in Dublin

Hi Everybody and Welcome to Best Shot Whisky Reviews!

Today I received a short report from our special Dutch Whisky Correspondent Jan Bronkhorst. Jan and his wife Joke have spend a long weekend in Dublin and could not resist a visit to The Temple Bar. Here is Jan's report:

Visit to the Temple Bar in Dublin, a “must” for whisky lovers!

During our city trip to Dublin, Ireland, we of course paid a visit to the Temple Bar.
This most famous pub in Ireland is located in the Temple Bar District near the River Liffey.
Always loaded with music - and whisky friends and everyone drinks a Guinness or an Irish Whiskey.
The Temple Bar has the largest whisky drinking collection in Ireland with 450 bottles.

See for further information http://www.thetemplebarpub.com/

And don’t forget to visit the Temple Bar during your stay in Dublin!


Jan Bronkhorst

Thanks Jan, certainly a place well worth the visit! 

Buying a full bottle or try a sample first.

I'm sure that most of you will have confronted this question on a regular basis. Because whisky is expensive and the last thing you want is to spend a lot of money on a whisky you don't really care for after having opened the bottle. On the other hand buying a full bottle of whisky (Nice bottle, Nice Packaging, Nice Presentation) is one of life's great  pleasures. So why not try to combine the Best of Both Worlds as the late Robert Palmer sung back in 1978.

There are great Nosing and Tasting kits out there right now. Special sets that cover a specific area like Speyside or Islay. Or you can make the combination you like the best. Have a look at this website www.nosingtasting.com  and discover your favourite whiskies! And then go out and get that full bottle! Satisfaction Guaranteed!

Today's Whisky Tasting Session.

Tonight I will nose and taste The Balvenie Signature 12 Years, a Single Malt from Speyside that matured in three different wood types - Sherry, First Fill Bourbon and Refill casks and was then married together by The Balvenie's Malt Master David Stewart. Look forward to it. 

From a very hot and humid Sao Paulo I wish you all a very nice weekend! Thanks for visiting the site today. See you all back tomorrow for the Tasting Notes of The Balvenie Signature!

Cheers!

Jan

Fleetwood Mac The Dance Classic Rock Album Review

Songs:  The Chain, Dreams, Everywhere, Rhiannon, I´m So Afraid, Temporary One, Bleed To Love Her, Big Love, Landslide, Say You Love Me, My Little Demon, Silver Springs, You Make Loving Fun, Sweet Girl, Go Your Own Way, Tusk, Don´t Stop. 

Type of Music: Pop(Rock) - Produced by Lindsey Buckingham and Elliot Schreiner - (1997)

Comments:

If I remember correctly, Ex-President Clinton´s favourite band is Fleetwood Mac and Bill invited the band to play Don´t Stop during his inauguration. The song, like many others, was used frequently during the pre-election period by the Clinton campaign people. That was the first physical contact between the five members after Lindsey left the band in 1987.

At the same time, Lindsey was working on a solo-album and invited Mick Fleetwood to play some drums. Mick then suggested John to play bass and before long the whole Rumours line-up was working together in the studio again on some new songs. And boy, did it feel good!! Next step was a 40 gig tour around the USA and a Live CD/DVD. The Project was called The Dance.

It goes without saying that commercial reasons played a part in this reunion. After all, none of the solo careers was really blossoming around 1997. But The Dance is much more than just another Live Greatest CD where bored Old Stars try to revive the past.

Sure, the hits are there but a lot of them get a different and better coat. Stevie´s Rhiannon starts off with a slow but beautiful piano intro played by Christine. Christine´s Say You Love Me is brightened up with Lindsey´s banjo and Lindsey´s acoustic, almost classical version of Big Love is one of the highlights of The Dance.

And the hilarious USC Trojan Marching Band accompanies the Mac on the album closers Tusk and Don´t Stop.

And there are new songs as well, cleverly hidden between the hits. Christine´s Temporary One is one of her typical pop songs that never hurt but seldom reach your heart. Lindsey´s Bleed to Love Her (touching) and My Little Demon (funny and entertaining) and Stevie´s Sweet Girl blend in well with the older stuff. This last song reminds me of Tom Petty´s Free Fallin´. I would have considered that to be a coincidence if Stevie and Tom had not been lovers at some time. 

By the way, Stevie and Christine are in Top Form here. Stevie´s voice is a few octaves lower but she adepts her songs well to her “new” voice. Christine´s easy going voice just doesn´t change. But then, her style of singing almost never required her to stretch her voice and it aged well. John and Mick are still growing strong. Only Lindsey lost some of his vocal power and from time to time he needs to force himself like in Go Your Own Way.

But as a whole this is a great performance. My personal favourites include the before mentioned Big Love, Lindsey´s I´m So Afraid with a blistering guitar solo, the tender Landslide and the standard concert opener The Chain. But above all there is the definitive version of Silver Springs, the Nicks song that was originally rejected by the other band members for the Rumours album. Stevie has never really accepted this. Personally I also think she has never really accepted the fact that she and Lindsey were unable to stay together as a couple. It´s almost frightening to hear her sing “You never get away from the sound of the woman that loves you” .

In fact, Mick, John, Stevie and Lindsey decided to continue the Mac after the Dance tour. Unfortunately, Christine refused. She simply was tired of the Life on the Road. She went back to England to enjoy a life without the Mac. She did release a solo-album a couple of years later but it went by almost unnoticed. That could not be said from the Mac´s next Album!     

As for this Live Album, make sure you get your copy of The Dance. You will not regret it!

Rating: *********( 9 out of 10)

Black = Good Songs

Green = Great Songs

Red = Could Be Better

Who should buy this record: Everybody!

Afterthought: The DVD is great as well and contains the ultimate versions of Stevie's Gold Dust Woman. No idea why that song was not included in the CD

Jan van den Ende                                                                                                February 2013

Bell's Blended Scotch Whisky Review

Country: Scotland 

Brand: Bell's 

Blended and Bottled by: Arthur Bell & Sons, Edinburgh

Type: Blended Scotch Whisky

Age: NAS

ABV:  40 %

Colour: Golden

Nose: As so often with standard Blends, Sweet Grain, Toast with a little bit of Honey and slightly harsh Alcohol are the first impressions, followed by some Malt and Earthy/Grassy tones. A bit of canned Pineapple syrup and some Wood Spice. That's it I'm afraid. I don't find unpleasant off-notes.

Palate: Watery Delivery. Sugared Cereals, Walnut casks, Oak, Spice and Caramel. 

Finish: Short and Watery with Cereals, Salty Licorice, Pepper, Dirty Earth and Slightly Bitter Wood.

No need to add water here. The Blend will drown in its own tears!

Rating: 70.5 

Nose: 18 - Taste: 18 - Finish: 17 - Overall: 17.5

Blair Athol Distillery

General Remarks: This is the most popular Blended Scotch Whisky in the UK. At its heart lies the Blair Athol Single Malt. But all in all it contains around 35 Malt and Grain Whiskies that have matured between 5 and 12 years. Dufftown, Caol Ila, Inchgower and Glenkinchie are some of the Single Malts used. The founder, Arthur Bell, started as a wine and whisky merchant in 1837. The Bell's blend was launched in 1896. The whisky was very popular with the soldiers during World War I. Nowadays, Bell's is owned by the Diageo Group. It's priced at around 25 US Dollars.

Drinking Experience Neat: Below Average.

Conclusion: How on earth can this be the most popular Blend in the United Kingdom? I've tasted the Bell's tonight but I won't gladly drink this again. Not because it's really bad but because I think distilling this type of whisky is a waste of time, money and material. Okay it's not expensive. But better drink a Bourbon then! Because there's absolutely nothing going on here. A bit of Grain, Wood Spice and dirty Earth. It's utterly boring and it does not provide any pleasure. It may be popular in the UK but for me this Bell's does not toll!

Jan van den Ende                                                             February 20, 2013

Follow By E-Mail

Hello Everybody and Welcome to Best Shot Whisky Reviews!

Since late December last year I had problems with the Follow by E-Mail gadget. Various readers complained they did not receive their notifications of the new posts via e-mail. It took a long time to discover the problem but today my colleague Renato managed to solve it. Tomorrow I will post a new Tasting Note and I hope everybody receives the e-mail advice. If not, please subscribe again via the sidebar. You can find it under the Visitors! Five colleagues have subscribed today and it went well. Thanks Renato!
It's been a while since I thanked all of you for your many and frequent visits to the Site. We have passed the 300.000 Page Views already and people from over 200 countries have entered the site. Comments have increased a lot as well and that's very nice to see. If you have any questions, suggestions for Tasting Notes or otherwise, please leave your comment and I will respond as quickly as possible. 
Tonight I will be tasting the Bell's Blended Scotch. It's the best selling Blend in the United Kingdom. Let's see if it earns that position!
Enjoy reading and see you all back tomorrow to find out For Whom The Bell's Toll!

Saude!

Jan