Erogers100
Monkey Shoulder Blended Malt
Blended Malt — Speyside, Scotland
Reviewed
June 11, 2017 (edited July 30, 2017)
Visual: In the glass it is a deep amber – clearly plenty of colorant added. Nice medium, lasting legs after a swirl.
Nose: Pleasing fruity aroma with citrus and stone fruits (cherries, apricots), and a hint of freshly cut cantaloupe and apples after a while. The fruits are accompanied by vanilla, toffee, and a bit of that sense of wet cobblestone that I sometimes perceive in Scotch whiskies.
Palate: The tongue is greeted with honeyed sweetness and some malty notes, a little dash of the fruit that the nose encountered, all followed by a dark chocolate bitterness and more malt mid-palate.
Finish: The finish is moderate, with the dark chocolate bitterness carrying through, along with a little ethanol warmth, perhaps a bit more than the 43% ABV would suggest. Breathing out through the nose, some of the original vanilla is evident.
Empty glass: Some trail mix and a bit more of a woodshop quality than I would have expected from an NAS that likely did not spend too many years in the barrel.
This is a Speysider through and through: sweet, fruity, and imminently drinkable. The affordable price would earn it an extra half-star were that option available. As it stands, I’m giving it three.
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