Compass Box Great King St Artist's Blend

Lots of baked apple, with a buttery richness. Spicy on the end, & robust throughout.

[Re-Review 01/26/16] Pale as hay. Faint vanilla, salted caramel, and straw on the nose. Very light, sweet silky texture, that goes down easily. Mushy banana purée perhaps? It comes rough right out of the bottle, so it requires a few minutes to sit in order to soften up. Addition of water creates a milky sweetness that could go either way. Moderate lingering finish. Nice burn on the tongue. Comparing it to other blends in it's range I believe it does much better, but it's still nothing too amazing. I would give it a 3.5 if I could.

88pts. Very good blend.

Delightfully creamy and smooth.

The nose is rather faint, even in a Glencairn, but if I work at it for a bit, I can pull out a bit of apple and nutmeg, so I guess Stephanie is pretty spot on with the apple pie reference. I also get a bit of earthiness, almost like potting soil fresh out of the bag. The palate opens fruity, smooth and creamy, than the heat arrives and balances things out, leading to a little spice in the middle before finishing with a floral hint and a bit more apple and vanilla. Not a bad drink by any stretch, and so much better than the more popular blends. Compass Box is doing good stuff, but either this just isn't my style of Scotch (it's not, really), or I expect a bit more for a blend containing over 50% malt. It's smooth and creamy, but it's not exciting; it doesn't pull me back for another sip to see what else I can find hiding in the aroma, to hunt for flavors tucked behind the initial burst of light fruity sweetness. If you don't like smoke, you don't like peat, you don't like much depth of complexity, and you just want a decent drink for a decent price, this is your ticket. For me, I tend to look at it more as Scotch without the malt, or Irish with half the flowers and fruit.