Monkey Shoulder is a blended malt Scotch whisky from William Grant & Sons, crafted using single malts from Glenfiddich, Balvenie, and Kininvie—no grain whisky in sight. First launched in 2003 as a bartender-friendly alternative to traditional blends, it was aged in first-fill bourbon barrels and blended in small batches to create a smooth, versatile profile ideal for cocktails.
With bold branding that broke away from Scotch’s stuffy image, it became a trailblazer in the early 2000s whisky renaissance. Since then, it’s expanded with variants like Smokey Monkey and Fresh Monkey, keeping the brand fresh and relevant.
Designed for mixing, Monkey Shoulder enhances classic whisky cocktails (where it really excels) like an Old Fashioned or a Whisky Sour. If you're after a whisky that's fun, full of flavour, and has a bit of history behind it, then pick up a bottle of Monkey Shoulder. You won't be disappointed!
Its quirky name nods to a repetitive strain injury once suffered by maltmen turning barley by hand.
An elegant, stylish nose of marmalade, Crema Catalana (apologies, but it really is there), cocoa and malt. Plenty of vanilla and a sprinkling of winter spice (nutmeg, cloves and cinnamon) alongside a mouth-watering hint of aniseed.
Very malty, creamy delivery with a suggestion of berry fruit. Juicy toasted barley, cloves and butterscotch. Manuka honey, hot-buttered-toast and dried apricot develop.
Medium length, spicy oak and a hint of peppermint on the tail.
This is whisky to be enjoyed. According to the Monkey Shoulder website: "Some say it tastes just like riding bareback on the wild moors of Scotland with a flame-haired maiden on Christmas morning. Others agree it tastes like 007 wearing a tuxedo wetsuit."
Started off nice but finishes rough. No complexity, no flavour. Not sure what to do with the rest of the bottle.
I first tasted Monkey Shoulder in 2012 and it was quite an amazing bargain for something under $30. In 2013, I had one bottle that was a step above anything I had before, like a fine highland single malt. Since then, I've had bottles that tasted so light and bland and others that were just average. Perhaps their blending process from three single malts have too much variance as the single malts do differ from batch to batch and they are not blending it consistently. Nonetheless, it is a good quality scotch on average and if you get lucky, it can be something really special.
I cannot, for the love of God, understand the positive reviews of this stuff. It's rough and cheap.
Really good and smooth with great flavour, wish I could buy it for $30 in UK. I think the poor reviews are from US Philistines drinking neat or even worse on the rocks. Only way to drink Scotch is with a little Scottish water at room temperature.
Let's just say: for those of you that compare this to vodka, you just don't know what you're talking about !! I tried this for the fist time several days ago. I'm a single malt scotch snob, but this triple blend blew me away ! I was impressed by the flavor and finish. For $30.00 per bottle, wow !
