SolanaRoots
Balvenie Single Barrel 12 Year
Single Malt — Speyside, Scotland
Reviewed
September 19, 2020 (edited January 28, 2021)
Admittedly I’m a fan of Balvenie, ever since the 12 Year Doublewood sent me exploring down the scotch path all those years ago. As a member of the core range, this Balvenie Single Barrel spent 12 years in bourbon casks and boasts a hefty ABV. While sharing the same age as its Balvenie sibling, this bottle is wildly different than its Doublewood brethren - the ultra friendly Doublewood being a great ‘intro to scotch’ and the Single Barrel being a rugged bruiser.
Strong astringent grass, barley, and bourbon-like vanilla on the nose, followed by a bitter explosion of similar notes when taking a sip. The finish is bold with a honeyed sweetness. Definitely enjoyable. Really can’t recall other bottles of scotch with this profile.
Rating: Distiller score of 89 is probably spot on. This comparatively unique single barrel scotch is worth a spin - a pour for sure if not a bottle. Cheers
Cask Number: 5303
Bottle Number: 68
65.0
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@Whiskey_Hound Cheers! Yeah the uniqueness of this bottle is a big driver of the appeal for me. Really enjoyable
Nice review! Notes are spot on. This is the greenest and grassiest Scotch I can remember tasting; this plays surprisingly well here. It’s a great bottle.
@CKarmios @Anthology Thanks. Could never quite figure this one out all the way through the bottle, which I kinda liked. For me, it always tetter-tottered between sweet & abrasive
@Anthology same here. I’m thinking it’d be quite a thing to be knocked around by a Balvenie of all whiskies. Good review.
Nice review! Interesting to hear a Balvenie described as a “rugged bruiser”. Didn’t see that coming. I’ve been eyeing this 12yr SiB and the 15Yr SiB sherry cask for a while now.