The trees are now but a skeletal remnant of the majestic display they've put on the last 6 months. Their wavering is the last hint of the vigor that flows through them, and reminds us these are living beings. Winter is coming...
We're tasting Balvenie 12 Doublewood. A generous donation here from Simon's Father. We've got a couple more Balvenie's on deck in the coming weeks.
We sniff around.
Honey. Vanilla.
Trevor says caramel.
The oak comes through.
Traditional sweet aromas.
Looks oily.
We cheers.
Nice mouthfeel.
Very oaky. Not a whole lot of heat. On the smooth side.
Getting some honey now a few sips into it.
We could say vanilla if we wanted to.
On the nose its more honey less wood, on the palate more wood less honey.
Nothing particularly different on the finish.
Ratings: 76 for Scott, it's got a lot of what he likes in scotches. 75 for Simon. He really likes the wood that sticks out but it doesn't have the complexity that the sweeter scotches need for him to get into the 80s. Trevor goes 74. Sean 77. We average out 75.5.
Overall, this is a pretty standard Balvenie 12 Doublewood review. You can't not like this scotch. It's simple. It's tasty. It's smooth. A real crowd pleaser, and some nice enough tasting notes with the oak and honey that we'd expect anyone be it an expert or a newbie could approach this and have a great time. That said it lacks complexity or oomph to get into people's upper scale ranges. At C$100 in Ontario it's unlikely you'll see it on any of us' shelf. There's just better options. Would make a nice gift for someone who's tastes are unknown. That said, if you're in Southern Ontario and you've got one of these bottles to kill... we're on our way.
For context our average review is 72.8, and bottles that review in that range are Oban 14 (73.8), Macallan 12 Double Cask (73.0), and Aberfeldy 12 (71.2).
Cheers!
The S&P Crew
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