A well-balanced, gentle single malt from Speyside. Cardhu 12 is a very well put together malt.
Good body, decent sweetness, richness. Streaks of smoke, apple peels, bruised pears.
Smooth, rounded, gentle sweetness, soft peat. A little smoke whispers sweet nothings.
Long, dry smoke, malty touch of peat.
Jim Murray says that this malt has “The cleanest, uncluttered nose that you will ever find” and I can’t argue with that. It’d pleasantly balanced with a slight oliness, hints of toffee and burnt caramel, offset by its sweetness and a slight grassy note. The palate is quite full. A pleasant, uncomplicated marriage of soft, butter-toffee oak and citrus fruit. Quite oily with a not unpleasant alcohol nip and a slight peppery finish. Pleasant if a bit unexciting,. I imagine that this is the sort of spirit that blenders would die for.
A group of 14 males all preferred this whisky to the Ardbeg 10 the Glengoyne 12 and the Glengoyne 10. We also tried a few others but I can't remember what they were. These four were the best but the Carhu was favourite.
