Tastes

This one is a minimum 21 years, NCF(!), and underwent a four stage process (including sherry casks) that, for the purpose of space, Ill describe as interesting for its eye towards consistency -and- depth of flavor. I paid ~$65 w/ tax for a 375ml. Nose: Golden raisins. Kiwi fruit. The best parts of that first sniff of a great red wine. Luxurious, even the smokiness which you can pick up but is at the end. Hides some honeysuckle dryness over herbaceous mint. Opens when neat in the glass to a light brown sugar with more exotic or vine-ripe fruit--blackcurrant jam and nice green tea. A nice one. It uses the sherry to create an excellent depth without being too fussily-layered or elusively complex. Spiciness turns up a tiny little bit everytime you come back to the bottle. Palate: The Dewars signature honey is everywhere but it doesnt ever get in the way of many, many great things going on: apricot, in-shell almonds, delicate oak, tons of lip-smackingly good sherry. Sadly this section was kind of weak overall. It has some great tastes and they are presented amazingly by the nose but it just doesn't do much for me profile-wise that I couldnt get out of the La Santa or something else notably cheaper. It was good tasting, but for the money I'm going Dew12. Mouth: Tries to steal the show from the nose and almost gets away with it. Easily the best I've ever had just in this specific section and for blends. 46% and it exhales like you drank air. Intoxicatingly shifts between smoky and sweet as you sip on it in the very back of your throat. The bottle says 'ultimate smoothness' and they werent kidding. Overall I'm going 3.75* instead of 4* because I truthfully had higher hopes for the tastes here. This isn't exactly ginger beer dram but it doesnt do a whole ton for me outside the easy drinking and amazing nose.

This is one I buy often, but not always. A pint usually. Maybe a 750 if it comes with some barware I like. I not-so-secretly detest the profile of regular no.7 so I dont really ever miss not having Gentleman around. Gentleman is 'double mellowed' allowing you to get double fu--I mean enjoy the distinct sweetness of this particular whiskey twice as easily. It gets the Tennessee Maple charcoal process twice instead of once like standard Daniel's expressions. Nose MAPLE charcoal. Caramel, the extra sugary kind you dip or coat apples with. You can practically touch the 'banana' palate note with just your nose. Extremely sweet charred oak. SMALL hint of vanilla, faintest hint of raw turbinado sugar freshly toasted. It disappears quickly and is small, but I get a grassy/lemongrass thing all the way at the end. A big pile of candy but it's not as saccharine/artificial as I remember it sometimes being in the past. Palate Maple, banana milkshake, unsalted/unbuttered grits, honey. Somewhere right before it glides down your throat effortlessly theres the QUIETEST little peck of spice from stewed apples intermingled with peppery oak tannin. The double mellowing is showcased in the swallow but you would be wise to pay attention to how the liquid itself is still generously flavorful for being extra-filtered and straightforward/one-dimensional. Mouth DANGER, DANGER. It goes down without trying. It's so sweet and balanced the ridiculous oily oil-overload somehow works. I personally think the oil mouth is what makes regular no. 7 undrinkable so that says a lot. It is easily 10/10 outstanding in this specific aspect despite being relatively 'bleh' in other sections. IMO Jack seems to have been improving this one over the nearly 20 years I've been consuming it. The only real criticism here is how just truly devoid of anything besides easy drinkability it is--something that truthfully feels like another compliment. Drink it neat, rocks, lemonade, straight from a pint, etc. Its good.

Awesome juice. Went into a dirty liquor store on the poor side of town and saw this thing all extra dusty with a price on it that was from before the single malt hike. Ka-ching, 20 bucks saved, an old 'to-drink' crossed off. Some mentions: Bourbon, toasted virgin oak, and rum make the caskings up. You would swear there was sherry, but it says there isnt and you'll read why. Its NCF and without added coloring. My bottle literally had a few wisps of barrel wood in it before I opened it that I noticed when holding it to the light to reveal in its amazingly golden-yet-clear color. NOSE Inviting hit of smoke. Sweet smoke. Cherry trees that havent hit yet. TOBACCO. Concord grapes that are old and nearly turned. Peat is there, but not as much as Stephanie's expert review on distiller claims. PALATE Ever take the long long way somewhere? Iodine, but not the coastal/seaweed kind its earthy and dense and different (this is a speyside and those are rarely peated). Greasy, rich meat is immediately cut by fruit spice, clove (really, CLOVE, not baking spice), the bourbon cask's vanilla finishes you away from the licorice/floral complexity. Delicate floral keeps finding it's way through but NEVER gets in the way of what is going on--yum! MOUTH Long. Makes you swear there was a sherry cask. Layered. The heathery honey lingers in a way I did not expect but was delighted by. I wouldnt outright call it 'dry' like Steph but it is indeed deceptively easy--you would never know its 92 proof. 'Smooth' doesnt do it justice. It's a rollercoaster compared to other things I've had with similar trappings but it saunters through them so slowly your tasting "brain" kinda stumbles as you get stuck finding your way through them. The bottle says add water and I tried ice--recommend you skip. It makes the sweet things come out bright, shiny and delicious but it muted all the amazing composition th is one has and vanished the unique peat it has. Paid $45+tax but would've been happy with a lot more spent. It's good liquor.

Granny smith apples still on the tree. A wisp of velvety cream then smoke. Some fine wood rounding it but never making itself unwelcome. Very, very nicely composed so its already a little Japanese that way. The casking is partial (bottle says 'some') so the full effect is hard to discern but you do notice the wood had more going for it than European or american by itself flavor-wise. Really makes me want to try a finish with more Mizu because again: the wood tastes great. Nose is butterscotch and vanilla for me. In the middle I'd maybe add the malt and grain whisky usage gives suuuuuch a luxurious cream/rich/malt it would be a shame to not enjoy this one neat. The finish is really smooth. I think Chivas could've given us a little more than 40%, but oh well. It wouldve gone to 4.0 or 4.25 easily with some more punch. The wife picked this out for my birthday as a surprise. Wife knows best ;)

Made a killer old-fashioned. Lots of nice bold oak tones but it isnt like trying to swallow an old fire log. By itself I don't see much here but will admit it was nicely smooth. The vanilla was nice--"grown up"--and not ruined by maple like regular crown.

THE BOTTLE DISAPPEARED. Outstanding 10/10 in a liqueur/drambuie type category.

Wife grabbed me this for Valentine's and so here we are. I personally avoid sweeter "drink this after dinner if you want a dessert" profiles usually but dont tell her--it was a 100/100 if she asks. Nose is immediately inviting with honeysuckle, dry beach grass, and a faint bergamot. 'Good medicinality' sounds oxymoronic but it's just behind the sweets. Palate starts off a little one-dimensional taking you somewhere between marzipan and burnt creme-brulee. The palatability starts kinda meh (for the age, but maybe not the price) however after a couple small sips the little things become easier to taste. Delicious tannic vannila. Richness of bananas foster. The vaguest tease of antique oak furniture freshly polished. Hint of raw almonds. Mouth is velvety. Soft, soft, soft. It's a good thing here. A little pop of oak closes the whole show right after gentle dry sweetness gets you there. I wanted to like it more, but it just wasnt all that special. Holding out more hope for the 18y and older by Dewars as I hear much better things about them.

Nose is light with a bit of tea/mint flair. I personally get a faint white peach at the end. Palate has definite grapefuit/musk/pine tones from the beer. I think it was 'just right' but if you were having an ipa with this it probably would be too tame. Theres a fantastic lemon and butter kiss after the IPA that really, really makes me wish Jamo would put out more "step-up from standard jamo" offerings. Reminds me of something I'd fill a flask with for a nice classy night out in my younger days. Finish is nice and crisp. Pot-still (while not totally) by the big name is expectedly enjoyable. The fun open and refined bite make for a very refreshing dram indeed. Was torn between 3.25 and 3.5 but it gets that little extra bit for being so well-composed.