White Horse

Nose: Mild malt and cereal aromas wrapped in grain whisky. Some ultra light sweet orchard fruit notes and with time a few brown sugar/syrup aromas arise that are supported by a bat-squeak of ashen smoke. After a long time some light citrus is noticed. [Interestingly, the dry-glass aroma is quite leathery and smoky]. Palate: A sweet arrival with dilute barley sugar and overcooked caramel sauce drizzled over thin porridge. The merest hint of dusty malt, a faint echo of cardboardy ash and a dusting of white pepper. There is no development. Finish: Short and fast, leaving a sweetish aftertaste from the grain whisky. The nose is not unpleasant at all, but it is very thin and soft. It seemed to me like a potentially good nose that has been over-diluted. You keep nosing it more and more deeply in the hope that something exciting will appear, but it always seems just out of reach. The palate is simplistic, fast and again tastes very much like the blend contains too much grain whisky in relation to malt, although both components are of good quality. I remember drinking White Horse back in the day but I've not seen it on the local shelves for a long time now. This bottle from which I'm tasting is a 750ml US specimen and was obtained from a supplier who has contacts in the TRE grey-market. I bought it for old time's sake and to refresh my memory, but I would not bother again. Like Teacher's, this was once a hefty and characterful blended scotch that is now only a shadow of its former self. It is, however, benign and very easy to drink and would probably suit someone who is looking for an extremely mild and friendly sipping blend. "Adequate" : 70/100 (2 stars)

Not impressed at first. Once the bottle got about one third down it got good. Sweetness followed by a decent amount of peat smoke. Solid.