Whisky of the Week

Timorous Beastie 18 year old Whisky

On 05/30/2022

Today I look at a blended malt from the Douglas Laing stable, the Timorous Beastie 18 year old whisky. The original Beastie was immortalized in Robert Burns’ famous Scots poem “To a Mouse” and was a timid, little field mouse.

When I tasted the standard Timorous Beastie, I realized that this little field mouse had the roar of a wee big beastie inside. A few months later, I was also fortunate to taste the Timorous Beastie 18 year old whisky, which showed the roar of the lion.

The Timorous Beastie blended malt Scotch release is part of the Remarkable Malt range and stands tall next to Big Peat, Scallywag, and Rock Oyster is Douglas Laing’s stable.

Also Read: Aultmore 18 yo Whisky

Launched in 2017, the 18 year old Beastie blends whiskies from several undisclosed Highland distilleries. Based on some research, it looks like the distilleries include liquid from Dalmore, Blair Athol and Glen Garioch. Only 7,258 bottles were released. The Douglas Laing releases are non-chill-filtered and naturally coloured.

The Beastie blended malt whisky range also includes a NAS as well as a 12 year old whisky. There is even a limited edition 25 year old Beastie released by Douglas Laing.

Timorous Beastie 18 year old Whisky Review

REGION: Highlands

ABV: 46%

COLOUR: Golden yellow

NOSE: Bold and inviting. Honey sweetness with vanilla and a warming maltiness. Green floral notes mixed with orange and something tropical. Gentle spices and faint hints of salt and smoke.

PALATE: Elegant and juicy. It is not overly bold but wonderfully balanced and drinkable. Fruit salad sweetness drizzled with honey, an oily, malty mouthfeel with creamy custard and green hay. Bits of white chocolate and white pepper mixed with oak and nutmeg. Hints of lemon and barley. A bit of alcohol heat, but it is warming. This Beastie only needs a few drops of water to open up the sweetness.

FINISH: Medium length with drying oak and honey sweetness, faint chocolate and pepper.

RATING: DIVINE

What a delicious full body dram. It has a beautifully sweet, spicy balance and is warming and satisfying. The Douglas Laing guys had outdone themselves in this blended malt. They do know how to blend whisky to get the best results. The 18 year old Beastie is packed with bright, balanced flavour.

It retails for around R 1 500 in South Africa, and if you have not tried it yet, what are you waiting for. I saw some recently at WhiskyBrother&Co. There were not too many of them released, so grab a bottle and see the Beastie roar.

Also Read: Yellow Spot Whiskey

Heaven Hill Bourbon Whiskey

By Jeannette Wentzel

On 05/23/2022

In Bourbon whiskey

With the fall of the South African Rand against most currencies, my little hobby is becoming expensive. So image my surprise when I walked past a liquor shop that had some “bargain bourbon”. It was the Heaven Hill Kentucky Straight bourbon whiskey.

At about R150 and in a glass bottle, this looked interesting. I was, however, sceptical about the quality. I first went to visit Google; just to see if I am buying a real bargain or a cheap knock off.

Some reviewers think that this no age statement, screw-top Heaven Hill Kentucky Straight bourbon whiskey is not too bad. According to my research, it will not win international prizes for complexity, but it is, according to some people, drinkable and affordable.

So, I bought it, and we are going to give it a try. Heaven Hill was founded in Bardstown, Kentucky shortly after Prohibition ended in the US. The Shapira family wanted to produce and market bourbon and premium American whiskeys. During the 1990s the Heaven Hill company diversified their portfolio.

They acquired more brands and obtaining import rights for gin, malt whiskey vodka and various other liqueurs and spirits brands. Today, Heaven Hill is the seventh-largest distributor of bourbon in the US. Other brands in their portfolio include Evan Williams and Elijah Craig bourbon whiskey and Rittenhouse Straight Rye whiskey.

In 2014, the name changed to Heaven Hill Brands. The Heaven Hill company remain independently owned. The Heaven Hill bourbon whiskey is aged for about 4 years.

Related Article: Jim Beam Devil’s Cut Bourbon

Heaven Hill Kentucky Straight Bourbon Review

COUNTRY: USA

ABV: 43%

COLOUR: Not as dark as some of my other bourbons. It has a pale golden mahogany colour.

NOSE: Not quite as rich as its peers. There are notes of condensed milk, caramel and fruit mixed with hints of cinnamon and nutmeg. There is a bit of alcohol bite on the nose. Not a very complex nose.

PALATE: Slightly more complex, but still not equal to some of our other bourbons. There are notes of spice, caramel sweetness. A bit of bitter orange in the background. Water softens the alcohol bite and makes it marginally smoother. The Heaven Hill bourbon is medium-bodied.

FINISH: Medium length and end in notes of inoffensive spice.

RATING: GOOD

I suspect that this Heaven Hill bourbon whiskey might work great in marinades for meat. For some or other reason, this bourbon reminds me of the old spaghetti westerns.

The scene: A bar in a small town in the middle of a God forgotten, desert area. The good guy (Clint Eastwood) riding into town on his horse, to track down the bad guy. The bad guy is sitting in the bar, drinking a bourbon neat, the bottle next to him: this bottle of Heaven Hill Old Style bourbon.

And when Clint Eastwood enters the bar, the Heaven Hill is the first thing he shoots at. The glass bottle next to the bad guy explodes as Clint’s bullet eliminates it. And then the fighting starts. Can you picture it?

Also Read: Evan Williams Bourbon

Glen Grant 10 year old Whisky

By Jeannette Wentzel

On 05/16/2022

In Single Malt whisky

The last time I wrote about a Glen Grant whisky was in 2019 when I looked at the 12 year old Non Chill-Filtered. I need to rectify this oversight, as it is a whisky distillery that I like. So today, I look at the Glen Grant 10 year old single malt Scotch whisky.

The first time I tasted this whisky was at a Whisky Show many years ago when my good friend Bernard Gutman poured me a tot. The Major’s Release is on my top 5 affordable drams list, and the 12 year old non-chill-filtered is perfection. The Glen Grant stand is always on my whisky show must-visit list.

Glen Grant was founded in 1840 in Rothes, Speyside, by brothers John and James Grant. After the founding brothers died, James ‘The Major” Grant inherited the distillery, and he had a keen interest in whisky-making.

Also Read: The Top 5 Blends under R500

The Major was known as a renowned innovator and traveller, and he enjoyed trying many new ideas. He was the first man in the Highlands to own a car. Glen Grant was the first distillery to have electric lights. Chivas Brothers Ltd owned the distillery in the past. But in 2005 it was bought by the Italian company Campari Group.

The core range includes a 12 year old and an 18 year old, and there are quite a few independent bottlings available such as the Checkers Private Barrel Co Glen Grant 17 year old release.

It is a well-known brand all around the globe and is readily available in SA. The Glen Grant 10 year old single malt whisky is aged in bourbon casks. Glen Grant launched the revised bottle design in mid-2016. In SA, it retails for around R510.

Glen Grant 10 year old Whisky Review

REGION: Speyside

ABV: 43%

COLOUR: Golden Yellow

NOSE: Elegant with notes of ripe pear, honey and vanilla. Bits of spearmint and fresh coriander with malt.

PALATE: Medium body and soft with sun ripe pear and apple and malt. Notes of vanilla, honey and oak spices. Adding water brings a gentle smokiness and lemon pepper to the front. Not very complex.

FINISH: Medium length with toffee cinnamon and oak.

RATING: VERY GOOD

A drinkable summer Scotch. The Glen Grant 10 year is not a bad dram, and I think it is an affordable introduction to Speyside single malt whisky for beginners. It is drinkable, but I miss the bolder, more complex fruity notes from the 12 year old. Even the Major’s Release has more depth and character.

It does, however, showcase the fruity characteristics of Speyside drams. It is readily available in South AFrica and in the affordable category. The Glen Grant 10 year old retail for around R 550 at WhiskyBrother& Co.

Also Read: Balvenie Doublewood 17 year old Whisky

Paul John Indian Single Malt Whisky Bold

By Jeannette Wentzel

On 05/09/2022

In Single Malt whisky

I started 2022 with a bold sherried expression from India when I tasted the Paul John Oloroso Select Cask whisky, and today I continue the drams from the Indian continent. The Paul John Bold Indian single malt is a peated whisky released by the John Distillery in 2015. It is made from 6-row Indian barley and peated using peat brought to Goa from Islay.

I have written extensively about the history of the John Distillery and have tasted quite a few of their releases, including Nirvana and Pedro Ximénez Select Cask.

Also Read: Ardbeg Uigeadail vs Lagavulin 16

The Bold single malt edition is part of the Paul John flagship range together with Brilliance and Edited. Every whisky in the flagship range shows a different aspect of the Indian whisky. Brilliance is unpeated, Edited is mildly peated one, and Bold is pleated to about 25 ppm.

Paul John Bold whisky is aged in ex-bourbon barrels and a NAS release. According to some research, it is probably between 6-8 years old. The Paul John whisky is non-chill-filtered.

Paul John Indian Single Malt Bold Whisky Review

ABV: 46%

COUNTRY: India

COLOUR: Dark amber

NOSE: Smoky notes with fruit and honey sweetness with hints of peat and nuts. Lots of fresh fruit with hints of oak, dry grass and salt.

PALATE: A delicious balance between honey sweetness, peat, woody notes and spices. You can’t miss the Islay peat and smoky hints, but it is balanced with baked apple sweetness and green notes. Bits of dark chocolate and oak spice. Full body and oily. Bits of lemon and black pepper in the background.

FINISH: Long and lingering with notes of fruity sweetness, bits of salt and peat with hints of chocolate.

RATING: EXCELLENT

The Bold Edition is delicious and unquestionably bold. It is not Ardbeg Uigeadail intensity, but more Ardbeg An Oa fruitiness bold. The Paul John Indian single malt Bold whisky is memorable and drinkable. I love the releases from this Master distiller. Bold has the Islay peat, but it is gentle and easy to drink.

A lovely regular sipper that is readily available in South Africa. It retails for about R 600, and it is my favourite release from the flagship series.

This dram also made it onto my favourite peated whisky list. You can read this article all the other peated drams that also made it onto the list.

Also Read: Woodford Reserve Rye vs Jack Daniel’s Rye Whiskey

Dewar’s 12 year old Whisky

By Jeannette Wentzel

On 05/02/2022

In Blended whisky

I am always looking for exciting whisky at a reasonable price. Call it the frugal Dutch side of me, but I don’t think expensive necessarily equals good. These last couple of years, I have managed to find great blends and single malt whiskies at affordable prices. Whiskies that you can buy 2 or 3 bottles of and not survive on dry bread for the rest of the month.

I publish my top 5 affordable single malt and blends list yearly. This year, however, has been a challenge. I am over the halfway mark, and I have not found too many delicious “new” affordable drams. My top 5 list was looking a bit bare.

That was until I tasted something at the Wade Bales whisky show. I tasted the Dewar’s 12 year old blended Scotch whisky, and immediately my Top 5 list started looking better.

Also Read: The Black Grouse Whisky

It is not a very well known brand in SA, so I went to investigate. The Dewar’s brand was established in 1846 by a wine and spirit merchant, John Dewar in Perth Scotland. John blended his own whisky and bottled it under his name. John’s two sons joined the business and in 1884 expansion started on the London market, and soon after, America beckoned.

Even President Benjamin Harrison was a fan. The Dewar brothers expanded their portfolio by building the Aberfeldy Distillery in 1896, and the brand went from strength to strength. Today the John Dewar’s & Sons company owns four other distilleries. The distilleries include Aultmore, Craigellachie, Macduff and Royal Bracka.

Bacardi owns John Dewar’s & Sons and other releases in the Dewar’s stable include the Dewar’s White Label and a Dewar’s 18 year old. The Dewar’s 12 year old is double aged as the whisky is married in oak casks after the initial maturation and blending.

Dewar’s 12 year old Blended Scotch Whisky

ABV: 43%

COLOUR: Golden sun-kissed wheat

NOSE: Delicate and sweet with tropical and sweet oak spices. Bananas and pineapple balanced with malts and honey. There are hints of cut flowers and bits of cinnamon.

PALATE: The Dewar’s 12 year old Scotch is light and fruity. Honey sweetness mixed with ripe summer fruits, oak and malt. It is smooth and easy drinking with a medium body. You barely need to add any water; just a few drops to release more sweetness and complexity.

FINISH: Ends on notes of honey, malt and black pepper.

RATING: EXCELLENT

What a beautiful blend! Light and floral, this Dewar‘s 12 year old blended whisky is perfect for someone who wants to try whisky for the first time. It is a delicious summer dram to enjoy during the hot summer.

This bottle will not last long, and at the price point, replacing the bottle is not a problem. This blend retails for around R300 in South Africa. It is cheaper than the Johnnie Walker Black.

This Dewar’s 12 year old whisky is worthy of a taste. I managed to get my hands on the Dewar’s 15 year old and loved it just as much.

Also Read: Chivas Regal 12 yo whisky