A terrific single malt from The Balvenie. This Speysider was initially aged in traditional oak casks before it was finished in casks which previously held Caribbean rum, imparting some extra sweetness and warmth to the whisky. In fact, to create it, Balvenie malt master David C. Stewart made his very own blend of West Indian rums, filled it into casks, and then eventually replaced the rum in said casks with Balvenie's whisky! The fabulous result is a well-rounded whisky with notes of toffee, fruit and vanilla.
The aroma is rich with notes of tropical fruits, namely passion fruit, and creamy toffee.
Sweet vanilla forms a creamy palate with notes of apples and mangoes with a hint of orange in the background.
The finish lingers with a vanilla-focused character.
Mouth-coating and fruity with superb balance, this is an excellent new release from the chaps at Balvenie.
Was: £192.90Now: £191.90
Enjoy all Balvenie offerings. This one is excellent. I find it easy to drink and really enjoy the cream, vanilla and honey characteristics.
The rum influence is tremendous and it is a very nice dram. Try doing a comparison to a normal Balvenie and a rum with at least a decade of maturation like a nice Appleton or Mount Gay - you will immediately see the similarity!
For years now, my favorite scotch has been Lagavulin 16. I just tried this tonight with my wife, and wow, what a revelation. I have always appreciated and enjoyed other scotches and bourbons without the strong peat characteristic of Islay malts, and I'm honestly in the mood for something in that vein outside of the winter months, and this REALLY hits the spot in that regard. I'll have to see how my feelings change over the course of the bottle, but so far, this is a new favorite for me. Not supplanting the Lagavulin, but more like they are #1a and 1b rather than 1 and 2. One thing that both the wife and I noticed immediately, which is (to me) conspicuously absent from these reviews, is the warm surge of sweet honey flavors that rise up toward the end of that wonderfully lingering finish. We both tasted before reading any reviews/notes, and we both are getting STRONG honey vibes on that finish rather than the vanilla I'm seeing sprinkled throughout these reviews. So someone tell me...am I crazy, or is anyone else picking up on that? A definite treat, and this bottle will be gone far too quickly. It's too bad at how scotch prices have been rising over the past couple of years; as a PhD student, this is nowhere near "daily dram" territory for me. My first instinct though is that this is a scotch I'm excited to share with friends and family, and I'm very glad to have given this a try after being somewhat unimpressed with the Balvenie Double Wood years before.
It was a bit rough but I normally don't drink whiskey this young. It was sweet, i tasted vanilla and soft honey.
Sweet, smooth, wonderful! A nice finishing touch to a day. One to try without a doubt!
