Cutty Sark 12 Years (1980's) Review


“Cutty Sark Special”

A Bit of History.

On January 1, 2012, I reviewed the Cutty Sark Original bottled in the same year. Here are the Tasting Notes I wrote back then:

Colour: Pale Gold 

Nose: As always give your whisky sufficient time to open up before nosing. I recommend at least 20 minutes. The Cutty Sark certainly does not present an impressive nose with Malt, Sweet Grain (Breakfast Cereals), Citrus and Oak. There is Alcohol but not as much of it when compared to various other blends in the same price range. At some point I thought I nosed Apple Pie with Raisins and Cream but it’s not consistently there. There’s also something nasty that I can only describe as morning sickness after a stiff night on the town if you know what I mean. Quite a mixed bag that we have here!

Taste: Delivery is a bit thin. Sweet, Simple but Drinkable with some Light Spices, Honeyed Grains, Extra Sweet Toffee and Apple.

Finish: The honey/sugar sticks to the palate for a while followed by Oak and the unpleasant Nutty Bitterness that is so common in Standard Blends and for which I have deducted a full point.

I would not recommend adding water to the Cutty Sark although you get a little bit more fruit (Melon) on the nose. But you completely destroy the  taste.


Rating: 76 

Nose: 19,5 – Taste: 19,5–  Finish: 18 – Overall: 19

Conclusion: Cutty Sark is not an expensive whisky and as such it holds its ground when compared to direct competitors such as Dewar’s White Label, Grant’s Family Reserve, Ballantine’s Finest, Chivas Regal 12 Years, White Horse, the Famous Grouse and Johnnie Walker Red Label. Still it’s depressing when you realise that 90% of all whiskies sold worldwide are blends, many of them of comparable quality, quite a few of them better but lots of them worse as the subject of this review. Anyway, Cutty Sark is an acceptable blend given its competitive pricing. It has some Speyside-like sweetness on the palate and some citrus on the nose. There are some off-notes as well, respectively on the nose (Morning Sickness) and in the Finish (Nutty Bitterness). If you go for cheap and reasonable, Cutty Sark could be your blended whisky of choice. Or you could save a bit longer and buy yourself a Deluxe blend or a Single Malt. Guess what I would do!!!

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On February 2, 2017, I reviewed the Cutty Sark Storm bottled in the same year. Here are the Tasting Notes I wrote back then:

Colour: Light Golden (Artificially Coloured)

Nose: Mainly Sweet with some Sour and Salty accents. The Grain Alcohol is very present. A tiny bit of Smoke and Sherry in the background. I also find Toasted Cereals, Toast and Margarine, Earth and Grass, Brown Sugar, Treacle, Caramel, Butterscotch, some Nuts and Dried Fruits (Sultanas and Hazelnut), a little Fruit (Pineapple or perhaps Mango and overripe Bananas), light Citrus, Refill Wood, light Spices (Cinnamon and Nutmeg) and a hint of Tobacco. I can't get excited about this. It's still quite similar to the standard Cutty Sark I reviewed earlier. A bit more Fruit perhaps.     

Palate: Slightly Thin delivery. Light, Bitter Sweet and mildly Spicy. On the Palate and in the Finish, the Single Malt component is more noticeable. I find Toasted Cereals, light Honey, Brown Sugar, Corn Syrup, Caramel, Dried Fruit (Apricot and Sultanas), Pear, slightly Bitter Orange, Vanilla, Pepper, Ginger, Nutmeg, Mint, light Licorice, Charred Oak and a hint of Tobacco. The faintest puff of Smoke from a very distant fire.  

Finish: Middle-Long, Bitter-Sweet and mildly Spicy. Dry towards the end. I find Sugared Cereals, Vanilla, Charred Oak, slightly Bitter Orange Juice, Menthol, light Licorice, Caramel, Corn Syrup, Sultanas, Pepper, light Cinnamon, Nutmeg, Ginger and a hint of Tobacco. On the Palate and in the Finish the Storm clearly beats the standard Cutty Sark.

Due to the fact that I merely had a small sample at my disposal, I only tasted this Blend neat.


Rating: 79.5

Nose: 20 - Taste: 20 - Finish: 19.5 - Overall: 20

Conclusion: The Storm is indeed an improvement over the regular Cutty Sark. Not so much on the Nose but certainly on the Palate and in the Finish where the higher Malt content is noticeable. I also didn't find any off notes in the Storm. At an average 25 US Dollars, the Storm has an excellent Price/Quality ratio and it easily beats most of the Bottom Shelf Blends. It's one of the few cheaper blends that you can actually enjoy neat although it's a bit Thin on the Palate. Don't expect Whisky Heaven when you buy the Storm because that's impossible at this price level. But it's an acceptable Blend with an excellent P/Q ratio. Enjoy it while it lasts!

Very recently I received a 5 CL miniature bottle of the Cutty Sark 12 Years from my parents in law. They already had it in their possession for quite some time and their educated guess is that they most likely bought it in the early 1980's. Although the miniature was unopened, I observed that around 15% of the Whisky/Water combination had evaporated over time. I'm really curious to find out if the Blend is still drinkable and, if so, how it compares to the Original and Storm. Let's go!

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Whisky Review # 662 

Country: Scotland
Brand: Cutty Sark 
Type: Blended Whisky
Bottled: 1980's (Emerald Series)
Age: 12 Years
Alcohol By Volume (ABV): 43%
Maturation: Mostly American Oak. Probably a few Refill Sherry Casks as well. 
Chill Filtration: Yes
Price Range: US$ 60-180 on the Internet (November 2017)
Buying Advice: 😕 Negative. Too Expensive. Go for the Storm!

Colour: Golden (Artificially Coloured)

Nose: Very Light. The Grain Alcohol is quite noticeable. And so are the Refill casks. There's not a whole lot going on here I'm afraid. I find Toasted Cereals,  Salted Caramel, Buttered Toast, Brown Sugar, Hay, Heather-Honey, Nutshells, Toffee, Dried Fruit (Sultanas, Banana), Apple, Orange, Lemon, Peach Jam, Dusty Attic, light Spices (Cinnamon, Nutmeg), Tobacco and Floral Soap. Most of these Aromas are just hints. There are no off-notes. I get a hint of Cooked Vegetables as well as some extremely faint notes of Smoke and Sherry. I had expected a bit more to be honest.    

Palate: Light Delivery. Mostly Bitter-Sweet. I find Toasted Sugared Cereals, Salted Caramel, Brown Sugar, Toffee, Heather-Honey, Vanilla, Orange, Lemon, Apple, Pear, Dried Fruit like Raisins and Sultanas, Pepper, Ginger, Nutmeg, Cinnamon, Menthol, Licorice, Tobacco, Charred Oak and the faintest hint of Smoke.   

Finish: Middle-Long and mostly Bitter-Sweet. A few Sour notes towards the dry end. I find Toasted Sugared Cereals, Heather-Honey, Salted Caramel, Grain Alcohol, Vanilla, Orange, Pepper, Cinnamon, Nutmeg, Ginger, Licorice, Menthol, Tobacco, Nuts and Charred Refill Oak.  

Drinking Advice:
Due to the small size of the sample, I only tasted this Cutty Sark 12 Years neat.

Rating: 78.5  

Nose: 19.5 - Taste: 20 - Finish: 19.5 - Overall: 19.5


General Remarks:

Cutty Sark was launched in 1923 by Berry Bros & Rudd, only three years after the introduction of Prohibition in the USA. Coincidence or not, the Cutty Sark Blend became the best selling Scotch in the States in 1961. On April 1st 2010, the Brand was bought by the Edrington Group. I don't know exactly when the 12 Years was launched but it most likely was in the 1980's. The 12 Years I'm reviewing today was a special release named "Out By The Cape, Home By The Horn". The unique multi-sided Emerald-like bottle has a special label that marks the historical destinations of the ship that gave this Whisky its name. The Heart of Cutty Sark is the Speyside Glenrothes distillery. It usually also contains small quantities of Glengoyne, Macallan, Highland Park and Bunnahabhain.

Drinking Experience Neat: Okay. I had expected a bit more.

Conclusion: "In the old days the Whiskies were better". I've heard that a lot since I started writing about Whisky. Unfortunately I haven't been able to taste a lot of older whiskies so I can't give you my opinion. In any case I was slightly disappointed by today's Cutty Sark back from the 1980's. Or maybe I was just expecting too much! It's quite similar to the Cutty Sark Original and Storm of today and that's good in a way as well. Apparently the producers did not change the formula a whole lot during all those years. My favourite remains the Storm as it has the better Price/Quality ratio coupled to a better Wood management.

Jan van den Ende                                                             November 25, 2017

Glenrothes

Arran 21st Anniversary Limited Edition Review


“Fighting Spirit”

Whisky Review # 661

Country: Scotland
Region: Highlands - Islands - Arran
Brand: Arran 21st Anniversary Limited Edition (Special Release)
Type: Single Malt Whisky
Age: NAS
Alcohol By Volume (ABV): 52.6%
Maturation: Sherry Casks   
Chill Filtration: No    
Price Range: US Dollars 200-250 (November 2017)
Buying Advice: 😏 Not bad but too expensive. Go for the 18 Years! 

Colour: Golden Amber (Natural Colour)

Nose: Sherry casks without any doubt. Some New Wood as well I think as I pick up this typical Varnish note I always find in West-European mainland Malt. A distant hint of Sulphur but nothing serious. Sweet and Sour notes are both present on the Nose. I find Toasted Cereals, Buttered Toast, Caramel, Toffee, Vanilla, Pear, Sweet Apple, Orange, Mandarin, Mango-Chutney, Pineapple in Heavy Syrup, Raisins, Heather-Honey, Wax, Hazelnuts (Nutella), Dusty Road, Chocolate Milk (Chocomel), Ginger, Nutmeg, light Pepper, Lemongrass and Mint. Distant hints of Green Vegetables, Wet Paper, Armagnac and Tobacco. It's a bit of a mixed bag and while it's not bad, I miss a bit of direction and balance. The Alcohol is reasonably well-integrated though.

Beautiful Arran - May 2017

Palate: Strong Delivery thanks to the more than adequate ABV. Bitter-Sweet with a few Sour notes. I find Toasted Cereals, Caramel, Vanilla, Marzipan, Red Apple, Pear, Orange, Mandarin, Grapefruit, Peach, Hazelnuts (Nutella), Dark Chocolate, Espresso, Tobacco, Oak, Sultanas, Pepper, Cloves, Nutmeg, Ginger, Menthol, Dried Herbs and Dirt Track. The Oak is quite strong by now.                

Finish: Middle-Long and Bitter-Sweet. Quite Dry and Tannic. Some Bitter notes towards the end. The Oak is even more present at this stage. I find Toasted Cereals, Caramel, Vanilla, Sweet Apple, Orange, Mandarin, Lemon, Marzipan, Dark Chocolate, Assorted Nuts (Almonds, Hazelnut), Espresso, Pepper, Nutmeg, Ginger, Menthol, Tobacco, Dried Herbs and hints of Varnish, Sulphur, Rhubarb and Peach-Flavoured Yogurt.  

Drinking Advice:
I added a little Water and the Alcohol retreats of course. But although this Arran gets more Creamy on the Palate, it's just not the same Whisky anymore. I often wonder if I should continue adding Water to the Whiskies I review. Sure, you may get some additional Flavours and/or Aromas but you change the character of the Whisky as presented by the Makers. If you have any thoughts on this issue, please let me know!
Rating: 85.5 

Nose: 21 - Taste: 22 - Finish: 21 - Overall: 21.5


General Remarks:

🏣   The Distillery and Today's Whisky:

Arran Distillery was founded by Harold Currie in 1993 and started production in 1995. Business is going so well that the owners (Isle of Arran Distillers) are in the process of building another distillery (Lagg) on the Southern part of Arran that will probably take care of the peated expressions. Production of this new distillery could start in 2018. The Arran core range now consists of the 10, 14 and 18 Years as well as the NAS Whiskies Robert Burns, Lochranza Reserve and Machrie Moore. We visited this distillery in May this year and absolutely loved it. Great tour, very friendly people, a nice shop and a good lunch restaurant. I can fully recommend a visit more so as the isle of Arran is a very nice and relatively quiet place. 

In June 2016, the distillery celebrated its 21st birthday, a.o. by launching the Whisky I'm reviewing today. It's a limited edition and only 5988 bottles went for sale. It's a NAS Whisky but it was made by vatting selected casks from the first three years of production (1995, 1996, 1997). This special release was bottled at Cask Strength.

Visit May 2017
🍷  The Spirit 

The average fermentation time at Arran is 60 hours. The Distillery operates four Stills. The Lyne arms are practically straight and produce a Light, Sweet, Fruity Spirit. The Water is sourced from Loch na Davie. The current Master-Distiller is James MacTaggart who just celebrated his 10th anniversary with Arran.

Visit May 2017
🌲  The Wood:

The Whisky used to compose this Limited Edition matured 100% in Ex-Oloroso Sherry Hogsheads.

Drinking Experience: Good. I expected more though.

ConclusionI like this Distillery and their concept but this Limited Edition is not among my favourite Arran expressions although it's not bad. But it lacks balance and cohesion. It's almost as Wood and Spirit didn't really come to terms with each other. Maybe the Arran Spirit is too Gentle to mature in 100% Ex-Sherry casks. Who knows! In any case this Arran, while not bad, is way too expensive for what it offers. My advise would be to leave this baby alone and go for the 18 Years instead.   

Jan van den Ende                                                              November 23, 2017

Visit May 2017

Springbank 18 Years Review


“A Dirty Mind is a Joy Forever”

Whisky Review # 660

Country: Scotland
Region: Campbeltown
Brand: Springbank
Type: Single Malt Whisky
Age: 18 Years (Bottled 2016)
Alcohol By Volume (ABV): 46%
Maturation: A Mix of Sherry - and Bourbon casks  
Chill Filtration: No   
Price Range: US Dollars 150-180 (November 2017)
Buying Advice: 😃 Not cheap of course but it has this "something"!

Colour: Deep Golden (Natural Colour)

Nose: Dirty and Musty are the first impressions that spring to my mind. There's some Sulphur there while I also get notes of Gasoline, Plastic and Cow Manure. An interesting start of procedures! It's quite Light for an 18 Year old actually. Be sure to give it sufficient time in the glass before Nosing. I also find Malted Grain, slightly Burnt Toast, Brown Sugar, Vanilla, Toffee, Salted Caramel, Toasted Nuts, Hay, Dirt Track, light Peat/Smoke, Heather-Honey, Cocoa Powder, Toasted Oak, Mineral notes, X-mas Cake, Sushi, Orange, Blueberries, Dried Banana Chips, Pineapple, Pepper, Cinnamon, Mint and interesting hints of Tobacco and Leather. The Alcohol is noticeable. I had expected more cask influence to be honest. I must assume that large numbers of Refill casks have been used. But there's this Dirty, Dusty authentic feel to this Single Malt that I like. It's not as fresh and lively as the 10 Years but it's thoroughly interesting.    

Palate: The best part of this Springbank in my opinion. I really like this almost old-fashioned feel. It's Dirty, Dusty, Musty, Bitter-Sweet and slightly Sour with Toasted Cereals, Salted Caramel, Toffee, Vanilla, Heather-Honey, Dirt Track, Wax, Salted Nuts, light Peat/Smoke, Cocoa Powder, Orange, Grapefruit, Lemon, Raisins, Strawberry Jam, Pepper, Cinnamon, Cloves, Nutmeg, light Licorice, Ginger, Aniseed, Menthol, Ashes, Leather and Tobacco. A hint of Sulphur. A bit of Melon after a while.         

Finish: Middle-Long, Bitter-Sweet, Spicy and Herbal. A few Sour notes as well. The Dirty Peat/Smoke is more noticeable by now. I find Toasted Cereals, Salted Caramel, Toffee, Toasted Oak, Bitter Chocolate, Orange, Blueberries, Dirt Track, Green Apple, Grapefruit, Pepper, Nutmeg, Cinnamon, Ginger, Cardamom, light Licorice, Dried Herbs, Menthol, Aniseed and hints of Cherry-Flavoured Cough Syrup, Tobacco, Leather, Diesel and Ashes. The Alcohol is still there as well.   

Drinking Advice:
I added a few drops of Water and you do get rid of most of the Alcohol. But it's not the same Whisky anymore and Plastic and Rubber notes come to the front. Better sip it neat and hate it or love it!    

Rating: 87 

Nose: 21.5 - Taste: 22.5 - Finish: 21.5 - Overall: 21.5


General Remarks:

🏣   The Distillery and Today's Whisky:

The Springbank distillery was founded in 1828 in Campbeltown and is owned by the Mitchell family since 1837. In the past, Campbeltown was home to over 30 distilleries but only Springbank and Glen Scotia have survived. The Springbank distillery produces three whiskies. The lightly peated Springbank that is distilled two and a half times, the heavily peated Longrow that is distilled twice and the unpeated Hazelburn that is distilled three times. Springbank is a very traditional  distillery and the whole Whisky making process is done at their premises. That includes malting 100% of the Barley. Because of this, Springbank became a sort of cult distillery with many loyal fans. Prices increased accordingly during the last 10 years. We visited the distillery in May this year and absolutely loved it! It's like going back in time. I can fully recommend a visit!

The 18 Years was first launched in 2008 but a new edition and format was introduced in 2010. Since then, the 18 Years has become an annual limited edition. The 2016 expression I'm tasting today consists of "only" 7200 bottles.

Visit May 2017

🍷  The Spirit 

Springbank operates 1 Wash still and a pair of Spirit stills. Their Lyne arms are slightly pointing downwards and produce a medium-bodied, Sweet, Spicy and Oily spirit. The water is sourced from the Crosshills Loch.

Visit May 2017

🌲  The Wood:

The 18 Years matured in a mix of 80% Ex-Sherry casks and 20% Ex-Bourbon casks. Mostly Refill casks I would say.

Drinking Experience: Good and Interesting.

Conclusion: This is not for everyone! Beginning Whisky drinkers might not fancy Gasoline, Rubber, Plastic and Cow Manure. This is certainly not an easy-going Single Malt. Dirty, Dusty and Musty. But also Authentic, Old-Fashioned and full of Character. It's not at all Balanced and the Alcohol is a bit annoying from time to time. But there's something irresistible to this Springbank 18 Years that tells my brain to have another dram! Unfortunately I only have a relatively small sample. The 10 Years is still my favourite day-to-day Springbank but I will certainly try to get me a bottle of the 18 years to be able to enjoy this bag of Oil, Dirt and Manure from time to time. Good Stuff! 

Jan van den Ende                                                              November 20, 2017

Visit May 2017

Malt Whisky Yearbook 2018 Review


“The Perfect Guide to the World of Whisky”

Hi Everybody and Welcome at Best Shot Whisky Reviews!

As you all know the purpose of Best Shot Whisky Reviews is to give my personal opinion on Whiskies from all over the world. As I would like to maintain my independent position I'm not engaged in any commercial activity. But, as I have done over the last 3 years, I would like to make an exception to be able to share with you the new edition of The Malt Whisky Yearbook by Ingvar Ronde that has been released every year since 2005. As always, the Year Book is packed with highly interesting stories, this time amongst others about the Secrets of the Stillmakers, the Guardians of the Whisky Galaxy, the Rise of English Whisky, Building, Running and Branding a new distillery, Scotch Whisky and the Law, Sweet and Dry Whisky Aromas/Flavours, and others. The writers include good old Charles MacLean, Gavin Smith, Dominic Roskrow, Ian Wisniewski, Neil Ridley, Johnny McCormick and Stefan Van Eycken.

Other features include sections devoted to The Formation of the Big Producers, Independent Bottlers, 150 of the world's best Whisky Shops and a summary of the latest Whisky Year. But the most important part of the book remains the detailed description of Scottish - and Japanese Distilleries and slightly shorter presentations on Malt Whisky Distilleries from the rest of the world. All in all 501 distilleries are presented. And there's still much more such as Whisky Statistics, favourite Whisky Web Sites, Distilleries per Owner, Closed Distilleries, Maps and so on.

Ingvar Ronde

Hundreds of books have been written on the fascinating Spirit called Whisky. Many of them relate to specific subjects while many others give more (global) overviews. I own several of them and I think many of you do too. And for sure I consult these books every once in a while. But there's only one book that stays next to my computer all the time and that's the Malt Whisky Yearbook. Why? Because it's one of the few Whisky books that manages to provide both newbies and connoisseurs alike with all the required information in a clear, pleasant and precise way!

On top of that, the Book is not at all expensive and is sold in Whisky Shops, Distillery Visitor Centres and at the editor's website:

Malt Whisky Yearbook 2018

I wish you lots of fun with the Malt Whisky Yearbook 2018!

Cheers!

Jan

J&B 15 Years (1980's) Review


“Old and Wise”

Whisky Review # 659

A Bit of History.

On December 23, 2011, I reviewed the J&B 15 Years that was bottled around 2010. Here are the Tasting Notes I wrote back then: 

Colour: Light Gold

Nose: First impressions are Peat and Malt with some Sherry lurking in the back. After a while we get Tobacco, White Pepper, Black Tea and Old Leather. There are more wafts of young Grain alcohol than I would expect from a 15 Year old Blend. There is evidence of coastal – or Islay distilleries in this blend but I find it hard to describe them. It’s like smelling a salty sea breeze but maybe I’m getting a bit too poetic here. But definitively salty! It’s certainly less sweet than I expected given the presence of the Speyside Malts. There are certainly some interesting aspects to the nose but you need patience to get through the wafts of Alcohol that keep distracting you from time to time. I will deduct half a point for that.

Taste: The delivery is a bit watery. A somewhat remarkable combination of sugary Candy and Peat, spiced up with White Pepper and Cinnamon. It’s hard to detect the malt whiskies here. Not at all elegant. No need to add water as the delivery is already on the thin side.

Finish: Disappointing. Short and dry with salted Nuts and White Pepper. That’s too little for a 15 Year Blend.

Rating: 80,5 

Nose: 21,5 – Taste: 20 – Finish: 19 – Overall: 20

Conclusion: Really disappointing. The nose is interesting although without a clear purpose or vision. The wafts of Alcohol should not be that present after 15 years! Taste-wise there's too much sweet Candy and the finish is not worth mentioning. It’s drinkable of course but in Brazil you pay around US$ 100 for this blend! For about half that price you can get yourselves a great blend like Johnnie Walker Black!

Very recently I received a 5 CL miniature bottle of the 15 Years from my parents in law. They already had it in their possession for quite some time and their educated guess is that they most likely bought it in the early 1980's. Although the miniature was unopened, I observed that around 1/3 of the Whisky/Water combination had evaporated over time. I'm really curious to find out if the Blend is still drinkable and, if so, how it compares to the 15 years that was bottled around 2010. Let's go!
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Glen Spey Distillery

Country: Scotland
Brand: J&B Reserve
Type: Blended Whisky
Bottled: 1980's
Age: 15 Years
Alcohol By Volume (ABV): 43%
Maturation: My guess would be mostly American White Oak Casks with probably some Ex-Sherry casks in the mix as well. 
Chill Filtration: Yes  
Price Range: Around US$ 125 on the Internet (November 2017)
Buying Advice: 😐 Neutral
It's rather expensive but it gives you the opportunity to detect the differences between older Blends and their more recent versions. 

Colour: Golden (Artificially Coloured)

Nose: Light but not unpleasant. My guess would be that mostly refill Bourbon casks were used for maturation. Probably a small part of Ex-Sherry casks went in the mix as well. The Grain Alcohol is there but not in an aggressive way. I find Toasted Cereals, Sweet Barley, Caramel, Brown Sugar, Salted Nuts, Dried Fruit like Apricot, Raisins and Banana, Orange, Lemon, Apple, Vanilla, Marzipan, Fresh Mint, Cinnamon, Refill Wood and hints of Peat, Tobacco, Leather and Ginger. The main difference with the current 40% version is the lack of Aggressive Grain Alcohol. It's also less Peaty, more balanced and with more depth. Better casks most likely.   

Palate: Slightly Thin Delivery. An ABV of 46% would have been perfect for this Blend. I find Sugared Breakfast Cereals, Caramel, Toffee, Vanilla, Heather-Honey, slightly Bitter Oranges, Lemon, Apple, Salted Nuts, Mixed Fruit, Pepper, Cinnamon, Ginger, Mint and a hint of Peat.  

Finish: Candy Sweet but not in a cloying way. The Grain Alcohol is noticeable now but it just stays within limits. I find Sugared Breakfast Cereals, Sweet Malt, Caramel, Toffee, Vanilla, Heather-Honey, Salted Nuts, Pepper, Ginger, Orange,  Apple, Menthol, Refill Oak and a faint hint of Peat. Both on the Palate and in the Finish this 1980's version of the J&B 15 Years shows more character and balance than the current expression at 40%. Better casks were used back than or at least so it seems.

Auchroisk Distillery

Drinking Advice:
Due to the small size of the sample, I only tasted this J&B 15 Years neat.

Rating: 83.5  

Nose: 21.5 - Taste: 20.5 - Finish: 20.5 - Overall: 21


General Remarks:

J&B was originally called Johnson & Justerini and was founded as a wine/spirit broker in 1749 in London. In 1831 the company was bought by Alfred Brooks and was renamed Justerini & Brooks. Currently it's the second best selling Blend in the world, only behind Johnnie Walker. The original 15 Years was launched in the 1980's and bottled at 43%. It has been discontinued in the meantime and has been replaced by the current 40% expression. The 15 years is made of over 40 Grain and Malt Whiskies. A good portion of the Malt hails from Knockando, Auchroisk and Glen Spey.  

Drinking Experience Neat: Good

Conclusion: The J&B 15 Years bottled in the early 1980's is a gentle and light Blend with a Speyside character and a faint touch of Islay. It's not aggressive at any point and Grain Alcohol, Refill Wood and Sugar do not pass the limit. When compared to its today's brother it presents more character and balance thanks to a better Wood Management. The Islay content is certainly lower in the older version resulting in a better balance.  It is still a little Thin though and it would certainly benefit if bottled at 46%. As a whole though the "old" version easily beats its younger brother on all accounts. 

Jan van den Ende                                                             November 15, 2017

Knockando Distillery