Speyburn Bradan Orach

Apples, floral notes and turpentine on the nose, sweet, smooth and oily on the palate, medium finish

Tasting this was exclusively the result of my mom asking for a "good scotch" for Christmas, which my brain automatically translated as "the cheapest single malt I can get my Scroogie little hands on". At $20 a bottle (which I patiently waited to go on sale to $18), this was easily the one. I didn't really know what to expect going into this, but little did I know just how unusual it was going to be. The nose can be summarized like this: honey and...agave somehow. This feels like nosing a tequila, and I can't even begin to explain why. The bottle notes mention green apple and lemon, so maybe I'm misinterpreting that. Who knows? In any case, its youth makes itself known right away, with a bit of heat shoving its way through the initial flavors. Among these are the same honey-agave but with a slight herbal character, black tea with lemon, and unburnt tobacco. Medium-length finish, but heat is left on the tongue for quite some time, despite its low ABV. I'm going to go out on a limb and say that there are probably better blends out there at this price. Other than some honey and weird-ass fruit, this is not a very good representation of a highland malt, or even a whisky for that matter. However, as the recipient proudly stated that she could indeed distinguish the taste of this from a bourbon, the guilt of not spending an extra $10 on the age statement seemed to just melt away. Maybe next time...or maybe Monkey Shoulder instead.

Very light and simple and quite enjoyable example of a classic speyside single malt. Light golden colour, rich creamy vanilla and fresh apples to the nose. Same to the tongue. Again very light, sweet, a bit “watery” perhaps, almost without any of spiritous hints. Finish is also sweet with fruity hints and oak on a palate; not very long yet satisfying. These all make it a simple but still a gentle and a pleasant whisky - a one to drink from day to day but definitely not to keep it as a part of a solid collection. I may call it quite similar to the Glenlivet Founders Reserve.