Duh duh da-da-duh duh. Ah, Game of Thrones. Television that captured the attention of the world for 7.5 seasons, then it became a show that infuriated most fans in its final 3+ hours. Well, whisky conglomerate Diageo had to get their hands in on some of the piles of money this show has raked from every corner of the globe. But how? Whisky releases that are themed to each House/Major Family on the show, and Castle Black/The Wall. That should fetch a hefty haul, shouldn’t it? The good news is that they used 8 solid, scotch distilleries to supply thirsty fans, some of which supplied a new, special whisky just for the Game of Thrones line. The bad news- some of the bottles contained the exact same whisky already released by said distillery- as is the case with this Cardhu. Gold Reserve is already a U.K. market release. They just slapped a Targaryen-themed label on it and re-issued it, although this time it went worldwide. It’s still 40% ABV, chill filtered and has so much added color it looks just like every other Game of Thrones bottle. It’s a crystal bronze in color and appears very watery in the Glencairn. Lots of watery, runny drops form and race back down the ring after a healthy spin. The nose started out heavily on the apples and pears, an artificial fruity note that I found similar to freshly unwrapped, salt water taffy wafted up for the first few minutes, then mysteriously disappeared and left behind standard vanilla and lightly toasted oak and candied malt. Some tropical notes emerged as I went in for the first sip and it reminded me of the song “Rastafarian Targaryen”. (If you haven’t heard this please go to YouTube and watch the Game of Thrones Red Nose Day special from the band Coldplay. It’s quite entertaining and amusing and takes you back to a time before the botched show’s ending). The palate was ushered in by the aforementioned tropical flavors and they are quite enjoyable. More orchard fruits splash across the tongue, typical Speyside sherry cask notes arrive at mid sip, and despite the rather thin mouth coat- this is an enjoyable dram. There’s absolutely no heat involved with this whisky- it’s almost like you’re drinking fruit juice. The finish is short and borderline overly sweet, but as you’ve already come this far, you knew how it was probably going to finish. It’s not bad, mind you- just sweet. As I pondered the whisky for a few moments after finishing the pour, I immediately thought of a great way to describe this whisky: it’s the leftover syrup from a Dole Fruit Cup...with alcohol in it. That stuff is a waxy and thin, fruity and sweet, and quite delicious! I have a couple bottles of this- as I built a few complete sets in case the collectibility went through the roof. (It did initially, but Diageo got wise and flooded the market with more, and drove the demand back down). Thanks to a sample pour from my buddy, @Generously_Paul from Michigan, I’m able to keep my sets intact. Thanks again, bro. I actually picked my bottles up for $32 each and after a quick search I found that the regular Gold Reserve runs about $42-45 online. So, I got a great deal. It gets 3-3.25 stars for flavor and I’ll bump it a bit for the $10 discount I got from Virginia ABC. Cheers, my friends. Now, Cue the music: Game of what now? I'm a rastafarian, Targaryen I got some dragons and they're Very scary and Been here and there and then I've Been everywhere again Rastafarian, Targa... Call me Daenerys Targaryen When you wanna reach me And if you feel the love Then you can call me Khaleesi Got so many names I'm Queen of the Andals Queen of the Meereen Yeah ! You can kiss m' sandals