Jura 18 Year Travel Exclusive

Ok i had my reviews a little wrong. Actually, this review is for my latest whisky tasted, the "Isle of Jura 42%abv". Previously i had another Jura 18, which was 40%. I am now fixing the issue in all rating apps. This one, right away as soon as i opened the sample it gave me a Christmas Cake and Orange aroma. Great. Bronze color. It has an amazing aroma, creamy, some nice aged mild peat, that mixes with the old dried fruitiness here. I got a small cigarrette note. Old, almost expired raisins. Dried fruits. Hazelnut. A little winey. Wonderfully complex. Some citrus notes appear after 5 minutes. Christmas cake, dried fruits everywhere. After first sip, oranges appeared on the nose again. Second sip, caramel aroma. On the palate: it is bitter, very bitter, very peaty. It is not harsh at all. Its a bitter, acid, peaty flavor, no clear notes but mostly "profiles", very smooth. The feeling is strange because your have this sensation that the flavors you are experiencing are harsh, but it is super smooth, and your palate is like "tricked". It is not the greatest on the palate, it is kind of weird, but not bad. Finish: Cigarrettes, ashes, smoke in a very lovely way. No spiciness, lots of smoke from a watered off campfire. Thatbis exactly how it felt on the aftertaste. Overall this is something different. I don't think i would recommend to buy a bottle, but this is a good whisky. It is just strange, not pleasant, but not unpleasant. It lacks "soul". I think that is a fair statement. At the same time it is smooth. But strange. I don't know how to rate it, and i think that if you have read this, you can feel my dilemma. Aroma is great, 25 out of 25 there. Palate is bizarre, but not bad. 20 points. Aftertaste is good. Nothing special. 20 points. Balance 21. It is a great perfume. It smells amazing.

Oh there was so much potential here. I was hoping anything finished in “Grand Cru” was worthy of at least 4 stars. The word Grand simply implies larger than ordinary. But sadly this one here is anything but Grand. This Jura is 18 years old, with some years spent finishing in French Grand Cru wine barrels. Grand Cru, as the name implies is one of the best standards for French Bordeux red wine, only to be superceded by Premier Grand Cru. Hopefully that translates to a better finishing for the whisky. But..alas, I’m proven wrong, at least for this one. The nose starts off really well. You get a salinity, briny aroma with some heft from the wine. The taste unfortunately takes a dive. It’s really rough, the wine’s weight fighting against the Islander’s saline. It’s a tug of war, that finally goes to the saline part, but it’s a Pyrrhic victory at best. Keeping in line with other Juras I’ve had, it’s just not worth the pour. Nothing to see here. Move on.