I was looking for an affordable alternative to Monkey Shoulder as a mixer for my scotch & soda or occassional Rob Roy and I posted a query for a few suggestions on a couple of facebook whiskey sites I follow. Famous Grouse was offered as one suggestion. My reference is Dewar's White Label, which I like but not enough to put it in my cabinet in favor of MS despite the price difference. Ultimately I'd like to find something closer to $20 than $30, and I certainly haven't had all the blends out there in that price range. So this is the first of what I think will be an exploration of affordable scotch blends.
I started by tasting this neat in a glencairn. Its pale, thin, and shows little in the way of legs on a swirl. The nose is sweet and only mildly scotch-like. Tasted neat this is sweet with forward notes of honey, some orchard fruits such as apples and pears lightly playing the background. Nearly no peat nor heat. Eh....
On a large cube this didn't get better. I"d much prefer my regular Johnny Walker Black or even a Dewar's White Label. Finally with soda, mixed 50/50, this is okay. Certainly not great.
This tastes like a mediocre Irish whiskey! Sweet and approachable. Probably would be good in a sweeter mixed drink like a Blood & Sand, but I don't think it will work in a Rob Roy. Overall its a thoroughly forgettable dram that might serve as a good gateway into real scotch for a first timer looking for "smooth" and sweet.
This isn't a bad dram. Just boring as hell. I think Dewar's is a "bell curve" whisky at 2.5 (minus a quarter point for being too expensive). This isn't as good as Dewar's, but it IS less expensive. Still....
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@Ctrexman thanks for the heads-up.
Black bottle is a step up from Grouse and Dewars for sure
Thanks for the suggestions. Next up is Black Bottle, and maybe J&B and Chivas just for fun because I can get those 50ml. I'll put your recommendation on my list!
agreed Bank Note is good stuff
@Cornmuse Bank Note is another good, inexpensive blend
Speyburn Bradan Orach is pretty good and close to $20 in most markets