Kirkland 12 Year Blended Scotch

A bit hot

Increased points for both price and experience. Strong sensation of brown sugar, vanilla, sherry and dried fruits. It is hard to ignore the smooth nature of the liquid. It is approachable and balanced. I was initially scared aware by the label indicating the smokey nature of the blended offering but take it from someone who does not like peat, don’t pass this up - you will miss out on a great opportunity to experience Scotch at its finest.

Nose: pleasant sweetness, malt, maybe light brown sugar, moderate darker fruit notes, rounded, vanilla, maybe an hint of spice similar to nutmeg, simple and straight forward. Taste: very much like the nose but finishes with a light smoky, peaty note. Medium finish at most. This is actually a very good budget scotch for a daily drinker. Perfect to follow up and keep your evening going after you and some friends have had a few drams of the good stuff. Edit 29May2021: Nose seems to have changed a little. I get a paint thinner/paint fume like quality from the get-go lately that takes away from the rest of the nosing experience. This very well may be a flavor/nosing drift from previous distillations. 2.5 rating if it’s like this. Still decent but can be off putting if you have it after a few other 10-15 year old scotches. Another edit, 22Dec2021: This thing is going on a interesting evolution. More flavor drift, but for the better. Way less of the paint fume quality. Perhaps a cocoa or chocolate quality on the finish now? The profile overall seems to be more true to what it was supposed to be. I’ll stick to the 3.25 rating as of this edit.

Very good deal for money