Johnnie Walker 18 Year

Smoke upfront. It settles into a vanilla caramel. The finish is apple with a subtle peatiness

I came across this fancy looking/sounding offering from JW at my local Costco. The price seemed fair enough so I said what the heck! Out of all the colors, I've already had black, DB, and Blue. I'd say this was somewhere in the middle. Maybe somewhat closer to Blue without the bigger price tag. The nose seemed light and uneventful with only a touch of apple and grain. The flavor is where it shined brightly. A plethora of notes consisting of cereal, oak, vanilla, dark fruit, and soft smoke/spice flourished the palate. This in turn persisted to the finish which was joyfully long. The ethanol was quite minimal and dangerously easy to consume. IMO JW did a wonderful job with this blend. I foresee this bottle becoming empty in rapid fashion.

This is my second JW that I've tried after the black, and while it seems it's not for everyone, this is definitely my kind of Scotch. The nose is sweet with caramel and little bit of spice. The palate is to me a perfect balance of fruity Speysides, with interesting citrusy notes and hint of smoke. The finish is longer than many of the others I've tried with a bit of smoky chocolate. I got a great deal on a 1L bottle duty free, and am going to try to try to make this one last as long as possible. I'm still a rookie with Scotch (this is only the 7th I've tried so far) but this is by far my favourite at this point.

Test

Very smooth, sweet