Compass Box Rogues' Banquet

Creamy, honey suckle, an amazing whiskey with an unfortunate price tag

Insert the song "King for a Day" by Jamiroquai, and lets start reviewing a Compass Box release that describes a very opulent Banquet. A blend of North British, Miltonduff, Clynelish and Glen Elgin, this is Compass Box Rogue's Banquet. It was released at the beggining of the 2020 Covid Pandemic, and it had the intention to relief people who where unable to abandon their homes due to the virus. The label might be the most beautiful one that Compass Box have ever made, and that is quite the statement. Some of the characters that appear on the label, belong to other expressions of compass box, like the hedonism muse that is in the center of the banquet, or the famous Peat Monster who is guarding the whisky barrels in the basement. True art. Bottled at 46%abv, light ambar color. On the nose, beautiful aroma. Apples, hay, stewed apples like baby's Gerber mashed fruits. It has a thick and creamy feeling. Honey, fruitspice. After s couple of minutes the aroma changed in something much more tropical like pineapple that has been left inside the fridge, peaches and prunes. After some sips it gave me vanilla cookies, dinosaurs or animals vanilla cookies for kids. On the palate, old pineapple, tobacco and cardboard. Hay and grass. Aftera first sip, it gave me vanilla, peach halves and pepper spice. The grain whisky can be felt but not in a bad way. Cookie dough and orange juice. Aftertaste mantains the good performance. Salt, hay, recently cut grass. Gunpower and a very long pepper finish. It is like licking the glue of an envelope to seal it. Salty and maritime. New wood. Overall, this is one of my favorite Compass Box ever. It was so elegant, complex and super enjoyable. It feels absolutely well delivered, perfectly balanced and full of tasting and aroma notes. They really made something great with this one. My score for it is 92 over 100.

Smells wonderful, deep toffee molasses, with meyhe some medicinal/iodine. Flavor is immediately sweet, a rich sugary maple syrup kind of flavor, riding on a medium to rich body. Wood and burn on the tail, interesting combo. The sweetness is almost too sweet, very apparent, but the way the flavor changes is excellent.

Cinnamon roll with toffee, and a bit of spice. It’s REALLY complex and delicious. We did a tasting of 6, and this won the day.

Sublime! Nose: Chocolate, Caramel, Strawberries, Peaches, Maple Syrup, Bananas, Raisins, Figs, Plums, Flowers, Cotton Candy, Baking Spices, Brown Sugar, Cinnamon, Vanilla, Coconuts Palate: Brown Sugar, Toffee, Milk Chocolate, Honey, Grapefruit, Caramel, Raisins, Cherries, Peaches, Pears, Raspberries, Smoke Finish: Smoke, Cherries, Caramel, Snickerdoodle Cookies, Dark Chocolate, Strawberry Jam, Oranges, Pineapples, Mangoes

Compass Box prices seem to have drifted out of my orbit so it’s been a while since I bought any of their new releases, with the exception of a $50 store-exclusive marrying cask. But I’ll eagerly try them given half a chance. Rogues’ Banquet is one of their longer-aged blends and worthy of more contemplation than my small sample allowed, but initial impressions are that it’s a sophisticated distillate-driven dram that doesn’t lean on peat or sherry to deliver its flavors. On the nose, the Clynelish wax stands out despite the small proportions in the blend. Helpings of pineapple cubes candy lend a fruity note. There’s a silky texture in the mouth and a mix of sweet and savory flavors including ginger spice and mangosteen. An interesting dram, albeit not one I’d buy at $200 a bottle.