DrRHCMadden
Johnnie Walker 18 Year
Blended — Scotland
Reviewed
February 1, 2023 (edited September 19, 2023)
Ah, JW15, suprisingly good. So, the natural progression in age statement to 18, well I might be forgiven for thinking I’m in for another treat. But, theres a catch. The bottle says “in pursuit of the ultimate 18 year old blend”, I don’t really know what that means, but it does foretell of the reintroduction of generic grain spirit. Whilst the addition of grain by JW hasn’t been an immediate turn off, I am beginning to understand just how much of a diluting and detractor to some excellent malts it is. So, not holding my breath on this 18.
Let’s check in with Scotty from Marketing: “An intensely rich Scotch that perfectly balances a trilogy of flavours and textures. It’s made with hand-picked casks aged for 18 years, with each passing season building layers of complex flavour. A whisky worth the wait. Drink it neat or on the rocks”. Excellent hand picked, I’m so glad they weren’t feet picked. This reads so vaguely and generic that I’m already disappointed with what I’m now expecting. Oh well, here we go…
N: Strongly cereal driven with a slightly oily to viscous presence. Also present, a fairly noticeable raw ethanol burn, nose feels woody and a little warmth from an associated spicyness. I think it’s trying to be slightly smoky, but its coming across as smouldering wet mulchy leaves, my nose is turning me away from whatever this is.
P: A little on the thin side and with a borderline gritty texture, or am I imagining that. Malty and with a little floral or herbal lift, really really subdued (subtle?) fruity flavours of sultana, mulled red fruit (think sherry cask), maybe some nutty oils. Smoke is probably there as a mixer to everything and i think responsible for my initial gritty texture that feels earthy by the mid palate. The ABV whilst low at 40% is fairly present but stays the right side of warming.
F: Long. Savour-sweet honey cereal, wood heavy sherry cask influence is the best I can describe it as.
Odd. I had to go and read some other reviews before I finished the dram. I figured I must be missing something, this is a AUD$149.99 18 year old bottle and I am thinking it is barely average. But, I can’t find anything akin to the official Distiller review by Stephanie Moreno. Maybe I just don’t mesh well with this whisky. I am a rank amateur, but I don’t think I’m that crap at this game. I’m at the point where my initial feeling from Scotty in marketing, generic and vague is about the right summation for this hugely underwhelming pour. It just fails to get going, the nose for me is disagreeable, the palate is like a limp handshake, and the finish is verging on being too heavily woody. What a mess. Boo.
402 Distiller reviews average out at 3.96/5, my score 2.5/5. Am I an idiot? Perhaps not. I tend to discount those scores without notes. Only 113 reviews have notes. But, those still seem to be a 4-4.25 average at a glance. What is going on? Is it me, or is it the marketing teams genius… take a formatively travel retail exclusive, make that available at regular retail, change its name from platinum to 18, leverage peoples tendency to equate age with excellence. AUD$150 for an 18, sounds good. Must be good. Hold up… this is freaking Loch Lomond 18 all over again. Damn Loch Lomond blows, gah! Enraged. Rambling rant over. I’m probably crap at whisky.
[Pictured here with a white coloured rock for a white coloured label. This rock is an anorthosite from the Proterozoic Rogaland Province in Norway. At ~930 million years old this white lump of rock is an igneous (magma) intrusive that is composed almost entirely of the calcium rich plagioclase feldspar mineral, anorthosite. What is particularly cool is that this is the same rock type that makes up a large part of our moons surface.]
Distiller whisky taste #149
Johnnie Walker running scores
Red: 2.0
Black 12: 2.5
Black Islay Origins: 3.5
Double Black: 3.25
Gold: 3.5
Green 15: 4.25
18: 2.5
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@thesherrybomber if you read this review, and the context of the whole JW series this is a part of, not to mention my other 230+ reviews you would release your comment is entirely misplaced. One of my all time staples is indeed a blended malt. Objectively average to below average whisky stands and falls on its own merits, not its label.
DON'T BE A SINGLE MALT SNOB
Hi @vinniethegreat , welcome to my notes and thanks for the comment. • The point of comparison is many fold. If you take note of how my review is written you’ll see that this is part of a vertical JW tasting. As per the JW marketing I have gone through the JW core offerings in ascending order of (a) price and (b) market perceived “quality/excellence”. The 18 leverages an age statement above that of the 15. • Why it is interesting to draw a comparison is because all tastings (qualitative) are necessarily comparative, we draw on previously experienced flavours and sensations to build a picture of new experience. It’s all relative. Importantly JWG vs JW18 is an exploration of moderate age vs the introduction of generic bulk. With the result, for my palate and perception, being that grain in JW detracts from some excellent core stocks of special liquid.
Not sure why anyone would even compare JW15 to JW18. They are completely different types of Scotch. If you expect JW18 to be similar to JW15 you’re going to be disappointed. Personally I think they’re both excellent but they are nothing alike. JW18 has more in common with JW Black than JW15 imo. Ultimately I do not think JW15 is “better” it’s just different. Many people enjoy the grain component that JW15 lacks. If price were no object I prefer JW18 over JW15 but JW15 is the better “value” due to its lower price point.
@DrRHCMadden Not sure, I have a couple of unreviewed bottles open and about 20 samples to work through. Maybe a rum for a change?
@cascode as always your wisdom and insight are seemingly limitless. Thank you for the clarification. I still feel I’m missing something on this juice, gold was much more enjoyable and nuanced than the 18. What’s next up for you to taste Sir?
@pkingmartin Paying attention to reviewers who have the same palate as yourself is the only sure way to buy with confidence without tasting first.
@DrRHCMadden The Distiller scope notes for this whisky are incorrect and misleading. Yes, Platinum Label 18 was phased out around 2017 and a new expression called Johnnie Walker 18 was introduced to carry the 18 year banner. However it definitely is not a rebranding of Platinum Label, as anyone who has tasted both whiskies will attest. If you look at the Distiller expert tasting notes for this whisky and for Johnnie Walker Platinum, you will see that exactly the same note by Stephanie Moreno appears on each one. Apparently, when they made this listing they just cut-and-pasted the note on the assumption that this and Platinum are the same expression, which is probably why the notes here seem so out of touch … they are. Also, I've not rated this one but I have tasted it and I agree, it's a good whisky but not worth 4 stars. I think I'd rate it closer to Gold Label, maybe 3.25, but I need to get to know it better first.
That’s an exceptionally high level of undeserved praise from you, and a huge responsibility! I will endeavour to hold myself to that. Thank you. • The Green, I suspect, is going to trump any JW with a grain component. The grain is just that diminishing. The powerful smokiness of double black supersedes the grain effect felt in black 12. And that’s my current JW standard pick. Green, in the right market (price point) is easily the superior choice. For me, green is overshadowed for the price by equally good or better options. We still have Blue to go, but I have suspicions already on that. • The great @cascode shared an Islay Origins Black Label with me, no grain content and resultantly an enjoyable and above average expression. Those limited offering JWs are probably worth checking out if opportunity presents. Sadly though, JW is volume over substance, a shame given their access to some of the worlds premiere liquids.
Sounds like a hell of a disappointment after that Green label. I’ve only bought one bottle of this in my life and immediately wished I’d just gone for another bottle of Green. Fantastic review and I’ve learned to ignore most reviews unless they are someone that seems fairly close to the same preferences as me. I’d certainly rather take a dram highly regarded from you over some of the professional publications that would give accolades to Turkey infused whisky. Keep up the fantastic reviews and interesting rocks!